onunoneA* 


William  J.Bn-nn 

•/ 


UNIVERSITY  LIS8KK1 
OF 


3  1822  00029  4892 


The  .>   1* 

Commoner 

Condensed 


BY 

WILLIAM  JENNINGS  BRYAN 


THE 


Press 


PUBLISHERS 

114 
FIFTH    AVENUE 

Condon  NEW  YORK  Montreal 


Copyright,  igom, 

b> 
THE 

Hbbey   press. 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE. 

The  Commoner,  Condensed,  is,  as  its  name  implies — a  con- 
densation of  matter  which  has  appeared  in  THE  COMMONER 
during  the  first  year  of  its  existence.  The  first  eighteen  chapters 
contain  editorials  dealing  with  subjects  of  a  permanent  nature. 
These  are  reproduced  without  elimination  or  elaboration,  and  cover 
the  important  political,  social  and  economic  questions,  which  have 
come  before  the  country  during  the  year. 

Following  the  principal  editorials  which  have  appeared  in  the 
paper  under  the  titles  given,  is  Chapter  XIX.,  containing  a  selec- 
tion of  shorter  editorials  taken  from  what  is  commonly  called  the 
side-head  page,  the  description  having  reference  to  the  position 
of  the  head-lines.  The  next  chapter  contains  selected  editorial 
paragraphs  which  have  appeared  from  time  to  time  on  the  para- 
graph page.  The  first  five  pages  of  THE  COMMONER  are  devoted  to 
editorials — the  first,  second  and  third  to  those  varying  in  length 
from  one-fourth  of  a  column  to  several  columns,  the  fourth  to 
paragraphs,  and  the  fifth  to  side-heads.  As  the  paragraphs  and 
side-heads  usually  deal  with  more  transient  themes,  only  a  small 
proportion  of  them  will  be  found  in  this  volume. 

Chapter  XXI.  contains  selected  matter  from  Mr.  Will  M.  Mau- 
pin's  department  entitled,  "Whether  Common  or  Not."  Mr. 
Maupin's  contributions  consist  of  poems,  fables,  dialogues,  squibs 
and  bits  of  philosophy.  In  his  entertaining  style  he  discusses 
matters  political,  matters  social  and  matters  sentimental.  The 
extracts  selected  give  a  general  idea  of  his  style  of  writing. 

Chapter  XXII.  contains  a  few  poems  which,  because  of  their 
special  merit,  have  survived  the  year  in  which  they  were  written. 
The  first,  the  "Ode  to  a  Waterfowl,"  appeared  in  the  initial 


vi  Author's  Preface. 

number  of  THE  COMMONER.  It  is  my  favorite  poem,  and  was 
brought  to  my  attention  by  my  father.  The  author  of  the  poem, 
William  Cullen  Bryant,  has  clothed  a  familiar  theme  in  beauti- 
ful language  and  so  embalmed  a  noble  sentiment  that  it  will  live 
and  give  inspiration  for  generations  to  come.  Poems  dedicated 
to  Jefferson  and  Jackson  are  reproduced  for  the  benefit  of  those 
who  desire  something  appropriate  for  occasions  on  which  the 
faithful  do  honor  to  the  memory  of  the  "Sage  of  Monticello" 
and  the  "Hero  of  New  Orleans."  The  author  of  these  poems, 
Dr.  Howard  S.  Taylor,  of  Chicago,  has  been  called  Democracy's 
Poet-Laureate  because  he  has  shown  so  much  genius  in  the  poetic 
presentation  of  democratic  principles  and  in  the  eulogy  of  the 
party's  founders  and  defenders. 

"The  Penalty,"  by  Mr.  J.  A.  Edgerton,  formerly  of  Lincoln, 
Nebraska,  now  of  Denver,  is  a  strong  and  stately  application  of 
moral  truth  to  national  life.  It  condenses  all  history,  sacred  and 
profane,  into  a  few  brief  and  impressive  sentences. 

"Ben  Bolt"  and  "Little  Boy  Blue"  represent  the  class  to  which 
most  of  the  poems  reproduced  by  THE  COMMONER  belong,  while 
"Nearer  Home"  and  "Amen"  are  samples  of  the  poems  of  a 
religious  nature  which  have  appeared  occasionally.  It  is  my  aim 
to  exclude  from  the  columns  of  THE  COMMONER  everything  ob- 
jectionable, and,  as  far  as  space  will  permit,  include  all  that  is 
helpful  and  wholesome.  I  have  received  frequent  assurance  that 
the  poems  have  been  appreciated. 

In  the  Appendix  will  be  found  a  few  articles  and  letters 
written  for  other  publications  but  reprinted  in  THE  COMMONER. 

The  index  is  quite  complete  and  the  reader  will  be  able  to  find 
with  ease  any  editorial  reproduced,  any  subject  discussed  or  any 
person  mentioned. 

WILLIAM  J.  BRYAN. 

LINCOLN,  NEBRASKA. 


CONTENTS. 


EDITORIALS. 

PAG* 

The  Commoner  1 

A  Living   Fountain 3 

How  the   Tariff  Aids  the  Trusts    3 

The    Vice-Presidency    4 

Militarism    against    Pensions    5 

Christianity  versus   War    6 

Trade-Uniomsm     7 

The    Boers — God    Bless    Them     7 

The  Party   Organization    8 

Secret  Influence    10 

Another  Endless  Chain 11 

Trial  by  Jury  Denied 13 

Tolstoi  on  Imperialism  14 

The  Presidential  Term   14 

The   Wages   of   Sin 16 

Subsidized    Instruction     17 

Towne's    Great    Speech     19 

The  Cuban  Constitution    20 

Popular   Election   of   Senators    21 

Liberty  a  Supreme  n ood    23 

Mistaken    Identity    24 

Militarism    25 

A  Worthy  Ambition   26 

Abraham    Lincoln    27 

Chinese    Atrocities 29 

Gambling    30 

An  Expert  Opinion   31 

Let  the   Legislatures   Act    32 

A  Prosperous  Trust   32 

Delightful  Uncertainty   33 

A  Partial  Remedy   34 

By   What   Authority? 35 

The  Influence  of  the  Press    37 

The  Cost  of  Militarism   38 

Senatorial   Wit    39 

"Warnings  of  a  Parting  Friend"   39 

But  What  is  the  Remedy? 44 

The  Root  of  All  Evil.  .             46 


viii  Contents. 

PAGE 

The  Monopoly  Must  Be  Prevented 47 

Chinese   Immigration    48 

Schley  and  Sampson   51 

The  President  an  Emperor   51 

Is    This    Aristocracy? 53 

Where  Title  Rests   55 

The   Fifty-sixth   Congress    58 

Applied   Christianity    59 

Should  be  above  Suspicion GO 

Prof.   Shaler's  Opinion    62 

Exploiters  on  the  Ground   63 

A  Sample  of  Harmony  66 

Benjamin  Harrison    69 

An  Impotent  Remedy 70 

$6   Reward    71 

A  Good  Amendment  74 

The   Canal   Treaty    74 

Commissioner  Gray's  Protest   75 

Amendment  by  Convention   77 

The  President's  Growing  Powers  78 

Politics  in  M'   ico   79 

On  Dangerous  Ground   80 

Harrison's  Last  Wor'         83 

Justice  to  the  Populists   84 

Jackson    vs.    Imperialism 86 

"Conquest,"  said  the  President   88 

The  Future  of  Cuba  90 

The  Capture  of  Aguinaldo   91 

Thomas    Jefferson    92 

Two    Oaths   of   Allegiance    96 

Denmark's   Good  Example    98 

Lincoln  and  the  Silver  Republicans   98 

The  Young  Man's  Chances   100 

A    Disastrous    Victory    101 

An   Unfortunate   Comparison    104 

A  Sample  of  Whitewashing   105 

The    Rice    Deportation    107 

Watterson    on    Destiny    109 

The  Money  Question  113 

A  Bit  Personal    116 

Politics  in  Business   117 

The  Representative's  Duty   119 

A  Lesson  to  Rulers  120 

Plagiarism 121 

Senator  McLaurin's  Bolt   122 

Tolstoi's   Noble   Appeal    123 

An  Executive  Duty 124 

Gambling,  Great  and  Small   . .,, , 126 


Contents.  ix 

PAGE 

When  Harmony  is  Possible 128 

Bravo !  Judge   Thompson    133 

Roosevelt    on    Duty     134 

Watterson's   Definition    135 

Virginia's    Temptation    138 

The  Pass  in  Court ' 140 

Criminal  Speculation 141 

Corporations   Enter   Parliament    142 

Motion,  not  Progress   143 

The    Ratification    of   the   Treaty 144 

Plutocracy   in   Education    147 

The    Effect    of    Diet     148 

Lincoln's  Gettysburg  Speech   149 

Mr.  Watterson's  Cartoon 150 

"What  about  Next  Week?" 153 

Blacklisting    154 

Before  and  After 157 

The  Richmond  Times'  Mistake  158 

Emperor   McKinley 161 

"Perhaps"     168 

Declaration   of   Independence    171 

The  South  Carolina  Situation 171 

Constitutional    Liberty     174 

Herron  Attacks  Marriage  System   178 

The  Doctrine  of  Thrones  180 

"The  Best  Form  of  Giving"    180 

Who  Wrote  It? 182 

"Large  Concessions"   183 

Unsafe  Banking   187 

Eternal    Vigilance    187 

Aguinaldo's    Offer    188 

The  Sulu  Treaty 189 

The  Ohio  Platform   191 

The  South  not  Excluded   194 

A  False  Charge   190 

The    Steel    Strike    198 

Not  a  New  Convert   199 

Admiral  Schley  200 

No  Middle  Ground 201 

Equality   in  Taxation 202 

Democratic  Remedy  for  Trusts   203 

A  Criticism  Answered  207 

A  Word  to  the  Disappointed   209 

Fake  Interviews   210 

A  Minister's  Lament 211 

Opening  a  Reservation 216 

Fusion,  Open  and  Secret 217 

The  Silver  Republicans 218 


x  Contents. 

Why  not  to  Kruger? 219 

Why  Ostracize  the  Best? 221 

Inexcusable  Misrepresentation  222 

Senator  Vest's  Interview   223 

Children  not   Burdensome    227 

Emasculating   Democracy    229 

Money   Problem   in    Philippines 232 

Mr.  Knox  and  His  Secrets   233 

Trickery   of   Words 235 

Mr.   Littlefield's  Address    236 

Judicial  Tyrnnny   238 

Mr.   Bryan's  Plans    239 

The  Nation  Mourns    240 

Labor  Day   242 

The  Star's  Inconsistency   244 

Making  and  Receiving  Apologies  247 

Will  They   Remember?    248 

"God's  Will,  not  Ours,  be  Done" 249 

Husband  and   Wife   250 

The  Cure  for  Anarchy 251 

Contemptible   Politics    253 

Dooley  Discusses  Candidates  '.  254 

President  Roosevelt   255 

High  'jLariff  Doomed , 255 

Freedom  of  Speech   257 

The  Turning  Point   258 

Another    Problem     260 

Dolliver  011  Anarchy  261 

Nebraska  Democrats  Firm 263 

Roosevelt  on  Trusts    263 

An  Example  of  Partisanship   264 

No  Time  for  Despair   265 

Facts  are  Stubborn  Things   266 

The  Assassin  Sentenced  270 

Kind  but  Surprising   270 

The    Farm     272 

The  Pan-American  Conference  273 

"Unconscious  Anarchy"    274 

Christian    Advocate    on    Trusts    t  . .  .  277 

Mr.  Cummins'  Error 278 

An  Inquiry  Answered   279 

A  Lover  of  Liberty    281 

"A    World   Power"    281 

The  Producer's  Share   282 

Tariff  Concessions  to  Cuba    283 

The  Elections  at  Hand    284 

One    Eye    Open 286 

The  Negro  Question    288 


Contents.  xi 

PAGE 

The  Moiiey  Question  Again  294 

Hoar   is   Consistent    296 

Death   without   Hope    297 

An  Interesting  Letter   298 

The  Elections  of   1901    299 

Organize  Debating  Societies   301 

Severe  on   Bolters    302 

Ex-Governor   Taylor's    Case    303 

Suspicious   Rejoicing    305 

"The  People  Sovereign"   306 

Our    Duty    to    the    Boers    308 

Workingmen  at  the  Polls   311 

The  Gold  Stronghold  Captured , 312 

Democratic    Leadership    313 

A  Prophecy  that  Failed 315 

A   Democratic  Duty    317 

The   Yellow   Peril    321 

Exit,  Jones  of  Nevada   324 

Can  It  Be? 326 

A  Stable  Dollar  327 

Let  Our  Ideas  Conquer 329 

Anti-Anarchy    Bills 330 

The   President's    Message    334 

Markham's    Poetry    340 

The  Prince  of  Peace   341 

A  Word  as  to  Gifts 342 

The  Meaning  of  Bimetallism    344 

Questions   for   Debate 347 

Too  Great  an  Advantage  350 

Admiral    Schley    350 

New  Year's  Day  Resolutions   351 

The    Philippine    Tariff    352 

Secretary  Gage's  Report    353 

The  Export  Tax  Decision    354 

Branch    Banks    355 

As  Others  See  Us  356 

Getting  Down  Rapidly  357 

Republicans   Prevent   Discussion 358 

Unjust    Discrimination    359 

An  Instance  of  Tax  Dodging 362 

Monopoly   Defined    364 

Financial    Legislation    365 

Steadfastness     366 

Hill's  Tempting  Offer   369 

Responsibility  for  Anarchy   371 

Is   a    Storm    Brewing? 375 

Lafayette's   Epitaph    376 

Perry  Belmont's  Defeat   377 


xii  Contents. 

PAOK 

A   Change    of    Base    378 

The  Nicaraguan  Canal   379 

That  Populist   Influence 381 

Why  not  State  of  Jefferson?   382 

Manifest  Destiny   383 

Trusts    Retard    Progress    385 

A  Remarkable  Document    386 

Shorter   Editorials    389 

Editorial   Paragraphs    395 

WHETHER    COMMON    OR    NOT. 

I  Ain't  the  Littlest  Girl  no  More .  402 

Two  Seats   403 

Writing  to  Santa  Claus  403 

A  Boyish  Nightmare   404 

Man,  Poor  Man 405 

If  Ol'  Hick'ry  Wus  Alive  406 

The   Household    Physician    406 

A  Little  Fable   407 

The  Twentieth   Century   Education    408 

Brain   Leaks    409 

Papa  Goose   Rhymes 410 

POEMS. 

To    a    Waterfowl    412 

The  Lignt  of  Jefferson  413 

Jackson's   Day    415 

Ben   Bolt    417 

The  Penalty    418 

Little  Boy  Blue   419 

Amen     420 

Nearer  Home    421 

The  Creed  of  the  Flag  422 

The  Man  with  the  Hoe    424 

APPENDIX. 

The  Hill  Coinage  Bill   426 

The  Man  with  the   Hoe    429 

Ratify  the  Treaty.     Declare  the  Nation's  Policy 434 

Industrial    Combinations    439 

British  Rule  in  India    445 

Address  at  McKinley  Memorial 454 

Moral  Courage   456 

Imperialism    459 

Index „ 461 


THE  COMMONER  CONDENSED. 


i. 

THE  COMMONER. 

Webster  defines  a  commoner  as  "one  of  the  common  people." 
The  name  has  been  selected  for  this  paper  because  THE  COMMONER 
will  endeavor  to  aid  the  common  people  in  the  protection  of  their 
rights,  the  advancement  of  their  interests  and  the  realization  of 
their  aspirations. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  apologize  for  the  use  of  a  term  which  dis- 
tinguishes the  great  body  of  the  population  from  the  comparatively 
few,  who,  for  one  reason  or  another,  withdraw  themselves  from  sym- 
pathetic connection  with  their  fellows.  Among  the  Greeks  "Hoi 
polloi"  was  used  to  describe  the  many,  while  among  the  Eomans 
the  word  "plebs"  was  employed  for  the  same  purpose.  These  ap- 
pellations, like  "the  common  people,"  have  been  assumed  with  pride 
by  those  to  whom  they  were  applied,  while  they  have  been  used  as 
terms  of  reproach  by  those  who  counted  themselves  among  the  aris- 
tocratic classes.  Within  recent  years  there  has  been  a  growing 
tendency  in  some  quarters  to  denounce  as  demagogic  any  refer- 
ence to,  or  praise  of,  the  common  people. 

One  editor  in  a  late  issue  of  his  paper  takes  exception  to  the 
phrase  and  says : 

This  expression  is  an  ill-chosen  one  and  should  have  no  lodgment 
in  the  vocabulary  of  an  American  patriot  and  statesman.  If  we 
sought  its  origin,  we  would  look  for  it  in  that  specious  demagogy 
which  has  evolved  the  professional  politician,  arrayed  country 
against  town — the  farmer  and  his  sons  and  daughters  against  the 
business  and  professional  men  and  their  sons  and  daughters — capi- 
tal against  labor,  and  built  up  against  neighbors  the  impregnable 
barriers  of  prejudice  and  hate. 


4  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

were  produced  in  the  United  States  7,418,475  kegs  of  wire  nails. 
These  cost  the  consumer  $1.31  per  keg.  There  were  exported  dur- 
ing the  same  year  307,194  kegs,  at  about  $1.55  per  keg,  the  for- 
eigner paying  a  higher  price  than  the  home  customer.  These  same 
nails  sold  at  $1.11  per  keg  on  an  average  during  1894. 

During  the  last  year  there  were  manufactured  7,599,522  kegs,  at 
an  average  price  of  $2.57  to  the  domestic  buyers.  In  the  mean- 
time, 752,871  kegs  were  exported,  at  about  $1.40  per  keg.  The 
American  customers  of  the  steel  wire  nail  makers  paid  about  $17,- 
596,124.37  for  the  balance  of  the  manufactured  nails  (about  6,846,- 
741  kegs).  Had  the  American  consumers  been  privileged  to  buy 
at  the  quotations  granted  the  foreign  buyers,  the  Americans  would 
have  saved  about  $8,010,686.97  on  their  purchase. 

More  than  eight  millions  of  dollars!  This  measures  the  extor- 
tion practiced  upon  the  hardware  merchant,  but  this  must  be  in- 
creased by  the  merchant's  profit,  if  his  profit  is  estimated  upon  a 
percentage  basis,  before  it  measures  the  extortion  practiced  upon 
the  consumer. 

And  yet  some  are  so  devoted  to  a  protective  tariff  as  not  to  pro- 
test against  import  duties  which  enable  trusts  to  sell  at  home  at 
a  high  price  while  they  sell  abroad  at  a  low  price. 


THE  VICE-PRESIDENCY. 

It  has  been  intimated  that  Vice-President-Elect  Roosevelt  is 
desirous  of  receiving  more  consideration  at  the  hands  of  the  Presi- 
dent than  has,  as  a  rule,  been  given  to  those  occupying  his  posi- 
tion. Whether  or  not  the  report  is  true  is  not  material,  but  the 
ambition,  if  he  does  entertain  it,  is  an  entirely  worthy  one. 

Why  has  the  Vice-President  been  so  generally  ignored  by  the 
Chief  Executive  in  the  past?  It  is  said  that  Mr.  Breckenridge 
was  only  consulted  once  by  President  Buchanan,  and  then  only 
in  regard  to  the  phraseology  of  a  Thanksgiving  Proclamation. 
This  incident  was  related  to  a  later  Vice-President  who  was  noted 
for  his  skill  at  repartee,  and  he  replied,  with  a  twinkle  in  his 
eye:  "Well,  there  is  one  more  Thanksgiving  Day  before  my  term 
expires." 

According  to  the  constitution  the  Vice-President  succeeds  to 
the  office  in  case  the  President  dies,  resigns,  is  removed,  or  becomes 
unable  to  discharge  the  duties  of  the  office.  The  public  good  re- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  5 

quires  that  he  should  be  thoroughly  informed  as  to  the  details  of 
the  administration  and  ready  to  take  up  the  work  of  the  Execu- 
tive at  a  moment's  notice.  The  Vice-President  ought  to  be  ex- 
officio  a  member  of  the  President's  cabinet;  he  ought  to  sit  next 
to  the  President  in  the  council  chamber.  Eeceiving  his  nomina- 
tion from  a  national  convention  and  his  commission  from  the 
people,  he  is  able  to  furnish  the  highest  possible  proof  that  he  en- 
joys public  respect  and  confidence,  and  the  President  should  avail 
himself  of  the  wisdom  and  discretion  of  such  an  adviser.  While 
the  responsibility  for  action  rests  upon  the  occupant  of  the  White 
House  he  is  entitled  to,  and  of  course  desires,  all  the  light  possible 
before  deciding  on  any  question. 

Congress  can  by  law  impose  upon  the  Vice-President  the  duty 
of  giving  such  assistance  to  his  chief,  or  the  President  can  of  his 
own  volition  establish  the  precedent,  and  it  would,  in  all  proba- 
bility, be  observed  by  his  successors. 

Many  public  men  have  avoided  the  second  place  on  the  ticket 
for  fear  it  would  relegate  them  to  obscurity;  some  of  Colonel 
Eoosevelt's  friends  objected  to  his  nomination  on  that  ground. 
A  cabinet  position  has  generally  been  considered  more  desirable 
than  the  Vice-Presidency,  but  the  latter  in  dignity  and  impor- 
tance is,  in  fact,  only  second  to  the  presidency,  and  the  occupant 
deserves  the  prominence  and  prestige  which  would  come  from 
more  intimate  official  association  with  the  Executive. 


MILITARISM  AGAINST  PENSIONS. 

The  following  press  dispatch  from  Berlin  will  be  read  with  in- 
terest by  pensioners : 

To-day's  debate  in  the  Reichstag  upon  a  resolution  submitted 
by  Herr  Nissler,  conservative,  to  amend  the  pension  laws,  so  that 
every  veteran  of  the  wars  of  1864,  1866  and  1870-1871  who  is  an 
invalid  and  unable  to  support  himself  would  receive  120  marks 
annually,  developed  into  a  terrible  arraignment  of  the  govern- 
ment. Speakers  of  all  parties,  conservatives,  national,  liberals, 
centrists  and  even  socialists,  declared  their  willingness  to  vote  for 
adequate  pensions  and  censured  the  government  for  constantly 
ignoring  this  debt  of  honor,  unworthy,  as  one  speaker  said,  of 
a  country  which  had  embarked  on  a  world  policy. 

Other  speakers  declared  that  the  attitude  of  the  Bundesrath  in 
steadily  refusing  to  provide  pensions  was  inexplicable. 


6  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

As  the  burdens  of  militarism  increase  a  government  which  rests 
upon  force  finds  it  necessary  to  choose  between  the  army  of  the 
present  and  the  soldiers  of  the  past.  It  can  better  afford  to  do  in- 
justice to  those  whose  fighting  days  are  over  than  to  alienate 
those  upon  whom  it  must  rely  for  future  assistance. 

Liberal  pensions  are  possible  with  a  small  military  establish- 
ment, but  hardly  probable  when  the  resources  of  a  country  are 
drained  to  support  a  large  body  of  professional  soldiers. 


CHRISTIANITY  VEESUS  WAE. 

Erasmus,  whose  words  have  echoed  through  three  centuries, 
has  this  to  say  of  the  antagonism  between  Christianity  and  War: 

Let  us  imagine  we  hear  a  soldier  among  these  fighting  Chris- 
tians saying  the  Lord's  Prayer  just  before  battle.  Our  Father ! 
says  he.  0,  hardened  wretch !  Can  you  call  God  Father,  when 
you  are  just  going  out  to  cut  your  brother's  throat? — Hallowed 
be  Thy  name.  How  can  the  name  of  God  be  more  impiously 
unhallowed  than  by  mutual  bloody  murder  among  his  sons? — Thy 
kingdom  come.  Do  you  pray  for  the  coming  of  His  kingdom 
while  you  are  endeavoring  to  establish  an  earthly  despotism  by 
•spilling  the  blood  of  God's  sons  and  subjects? — Thy  will  be  done 
in  earth  as  it  is  in  Heaven.  His  will  in  Heaven  is  for  peace;  but 
you  are  now  meditating  war. — Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread. 
How  dare  you  say  this  to  your  Father  in  Heaven  at  the  moment 
that  you  are  going  to  burn  your  brother's  corn  fields  and  would 
rather  lose  the  benefit  of  them  yourself  than  suffer  him  to  enjoy 
them  unmolested? — Forgive  us  our  trespasses  as  we  forgive  those 
who  trespass  against  us.  With  what  face  can  you  pray  thus,  when, 
so  far  from  forgiving  your  brother,  you  are  going  with  all  the 
haste  you  can,  to  murder  -him  in  cold  blood  for  an  alleged  trespass 
which,  after  all,  is  but  imaginary? — Lead  us  not  into  temptation. 
And  do  you  presume  to  deprecate  temptation  or  danger — you 
who  are  not  only  rushing  into  it  yourself,  but  doing  all  you  can  to 
force  your  brother  into  it? — Deliver  us  from  evil.  You  pray  to 
be  delivered  from  evil,  that  is,  from  the  evil  being,  Satan,  to  whose 
impulses  you  are  now  submitting  yourself,  and  by  whose  spirit 
you  are  guided  in  contriving  the  greatest  possible  evil  to  your 
brother  ? 

These  sentiments,  set  forth  and  commented  upon  in  the  Peace 
Manual,  are  respectfully  commended  to  those  followers  of  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  7 

Nazarene  who  preach  a  strenuous  gospel  of  bloodshed,  and  who 
imagine  that  they  see  God's  hand  directing  a  war  waged  for  con- 
quest and  the  extension  of  trade. 


TRADE-UNIONISM. 

Mr.  Wise,  a  member  of  the  Australian  Parliament,  in  a  speech 
in  favor  of  arbitration,  sets  forth  the  necessity  for  trade-union- 
ism so  forcibly  that  an  extract"  is  given  below : 

Trade-Unionism  is,  as  I  have  said,  to  the  laborer  what  capital 
is  to  the  employer;  and  without  trade-unionism  we  would  not  feel 
that  there  could  be  any  real  freedom  of  contract  between  the 
laborer  and  the  employer. 

Freedom  only  exists  when  those  on  either  side  are  free  to  ac- 
cept or  reject  the  terms  that  are  offered.  To  secure  that  freedom 
is  the  object  of  trade-unionism,  because  it  recognizes  that  in  or- 
der to  have  a  fair  bargain  made,  each  party  to  the  bargain  must 
be  on  a  footing  of  equality. 

The  labor  organization  not  only  helps  those  who  belong  to  it, 
but  it  also  helps  those  who  are  not  members.  For  even  those  on 
the  outside  share  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  in  the  better  wages, 
the  shorter  hours  and  the  more  favorable  conditions  secured  by 
the  labor  organizations.  If  unions  or  federations  make  mistakes 
it  must  be  remembered  that  perfection  is  not  to  be  expected  in 
any  work  of  human  hands.  The  good  done  by  these  organiza- 
tions far  outweighs  the  errors  which  they  have  committed. 


THE  BOERS— GOD  BLESS  THEM. 

The  reports  from  South  Africa  revive  the  stories  of  ancient 
heroism.  That  a  force  so  small  should  be  able  to  hold  the  British 
army  at  bay  and  even  re-take  some  of  the  surrendered  places  seems 
too  wonderful  to  be-  true.  Millions  here  and  throughout  the 
world  who  believe  in  self-government  and  deny  the  right  of  a 
strong  nation  to  cast  its  sovereignty  like  a  net  over  a  weaker 
people,  are  watching  with  intense  interest  the  unequal  struggle 
of  the  Boers  in  defense  of  their  independence.  If  they  succeed  in 
forcing  a  recognition  of  their  republics,  their  victory  will  mark  the 
turning  point  in  the  recent  trend  toward  imperial  ideas  and  their 


8  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

sacrifices  will  be  of  incalculable  value  to  the  human  race.  If, 
however,  they  fail  and  are  compelled  at  last  to  submit  to  the  Eng- 
lish  yoke,  their  valiant  resistance  will  have  furnished  innumerable 
themes  for  poetry  and  song,  and  the  lovers  of  liberty  for  cen- 
turies to  come  will  find  inspiration  in  their  courage  and  patriotism. 


THE  PARTY  ORGANIZATION. 

After  the  defeat  of  1896  the  gold  democrats  met  and  congratu- 
lated themselves  upon  their  part  in  the  republican  victory  and  de- 
manded a  re-organization  of  the  party.  A  second  defeat  has 
brought  forth  another  chorus  of  criticism  and  a  demand  that  the 
party  management  be  turned  over  to  those  who  for  the  past  four 
years  have  held  themselves  aloof  from  the  organization  and  spent 
their  time  in  condemnation  of  the  policies  endorsed  in  the  party 
platform. 

Men  who  have  repudiated  the  party  creed  and  the  party  candi- 
dates, and  yet  pride  themselves  upon  their  superior  democracy, 
urge  a  return  to  what  they  call  the  first  principles  of  democracy. 
Pressed  for  some  definite  statement  of  their  views  they  either  evade 
the  question  or  resort  to  language  too  ponderous  for  the  under- 
standing. Whatever  differences  of  opinion  may  exist  concerning 
the  various  planks  of  the  Kansas  City  platform,  the  indisputable 
fact  remains  that  that  platform  embraces  the  essential  principles 
of  democracy  as  taught  by  all  the  great  leaders  of  the  past  and  as 
accepted  by  the  rank  and  file.  Many  democrats  who  left  the  party 
in  1896  came  back  in  1900  and  were  cordially  welcomed.  While 
not  agreeing  to  every  policy  set  forth,  they  gave  hearty  support  to 
the  democratic  candidates  because  they  believed  that  the  platform 
was  sound  in  its  cardinal  principles. 

Exact  fulfilment  of  national  pledges  and  adherence  to  the  Con- 
stitution, perfect  compliance  with  the  spirit  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  firm  advocacy  of  the  Monroe  Doctrine,  stern  an- 
tagonism to  militarism,  relentless  opposition  to  trusts,  uncom- 
promising hostility  to  an  unjust  dollar  and  to  a  surrender  to  na- 
tional banks  of  the  money  issuing  functions  of  the  government, 
strong  protest  against  entangling  alliance  with  any  other  nation, 
vigorous  objection  to  the  plan  of  wasting  the  people's  money  in 
subsidies  to  a  few.  individuals,  earnest  appeal  for  the  restoration 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  9 

of  popular  government  and  the  principles  which  have  given  life 
and  prosperity  to  the  nation — these  must  represent  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  democracy  and  these  received  the  endorse- 
ment of  the  convention  which  met  at  Kansas  City. 

There  is  a  marked  difference  between  the  methods  employed  by 
the  democrats  who  believe  in  the  Kansas  City  platform  and  the 
methods  employed  by  those  who  oppose  that  platform.  The  former 
have  fixed  principles,  state  them  without  ambiguity,  and  invite 
judgment  upon  them;  the  latter  prate  about  principles,  assume  a 
"holier  than  thou"  attitude  and  declaim  about  national  honors  and 
party  traditions,  but  never  put  their  principles  into  concrete  form 
or  outline  a  plan  for  dealing  with  present  political  problems.  They 
are  against  the  Kansas  City  platform,  but  what  are  they  for?  They 
are  against  the  silver  plank,  but  what  financial  policy  do  they  pro- 
pose? Do  they  favor  the  national  bank  note  or  the  greenback? 
Are  they  for  an  income  tax  or  against  it?  Do  they  favor  the 
popular  election  of  senators,  or  do  they  oppose  it?  What  is  their 
attitude  on  the  question  of  private  monopolies?  What  would  they 
do  with  the  Philippine  Islands?  How  large  an  army  do  they 
think  necessary?  What  do  they  think  of  government  by  injunc- 
tion? 

The  party  as  now  organized  has  taken  a  position  on  these  ques- 
tions and  is  ready  to  defend  it.  Let  the  re-organizers  present  a 
statement  of  their  views,  equally  "definite  and  detailed,  so  that  the 
voters,  or  the  rank  and  file,  if  you  please,  may  act  understandingly. 

When  these  self-styled  democrats  left  the  party  they  said  that 
they  preferred  principles  to  success;  now  they  ask  those  who  re- 
mained true  to  the  party  to  surrender  principles  in  order  to  secure 
success  under  their  leadership  and  they  promise  success  notwith- 
standing the  fact  that  the  defeat  of  1894,  which  came  under  their 
leadership,  was  the  most  disastrous  since  1872,  and  notwithstanding 
the  further  fact  that  the  ticket  which  they  nominated  in  1896 
carried  but  one  precinct  in  the  United  States. 

If  any  change  in  the  present  organization  is  necessary  it  can 
be  made  by  the  voters  in  the  regular  way  and  at  the  proper  time. 
If  in  the  meantime,  any  member  of  the  organization  dies,  resigns 
or  is  replaced,  the  new  member  ought  to  be  in  harmony  with  the 
people  who  select  him,  for,  as  a  member  of  the  organization,  he 
acts  in  a  representative  capacity. 


jo  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  only  way  to  insure  this  harmony,  is  to  insist  that  the  candi- 
date shall  be  frank  and  candid  in  making  known  his  views  to  those 
to  whom  he  appeals,  and  every  honest  democrat  seeking  party  prom- 
inence with  a  sincere  desire  to  aid  the  party  will  he  willing  to 
make  known  his  views  on  every  disputed  question.  Beware  of  the 
man  who  boasts  of  his  democracy  but  refuses  to  define  it. 

The  so-called  democrats  who  voted  the  republican  ticket  showed 
by  so  doing  that  they  were  nearer  to  the  republican  position  than 
they  were  to  the  democratic  position.  In  order  to  regain  their 
confidence,  they  must  undergo  a  change  or  the  democratic  party 
must  move  over  toward  the  republican  position.  As  the  re-organ- 
izers have  manifested  no  change  of  heart  the  effort  to  re-organize 
might  more  properly  be  called  an  effort  to  republicanize  the  demo- 
cratic party.  To  make  the  effort  a  success  the  democrats  must 
either  be  converted  to  republican  ideas,  or  be  deceived  into  the 
support  of  men  who  wear  the  livery  of  democracy,  but  lean  toward 
republican  doctrines. 


SECRET  INFLUENCE. 

The  people  have  nothing  to  fear  from  open  enemies.  The  man 
who  boldly  proclaims  a  principle,  no  matter  what  it  may  be,  can 
do  but  little  injury.  No  amount  of  intellect,  learning  or  eloquence 
can  make  him  dangerous.  As  Jefferson  has  expressed  it,  "Error 
of  opinion  may  be  tolerated  where  reason  is  left  free  to  combat 
it."  Truth  grows  in  the  open  field;  the  sunshine  nourishes  and 
strengthens  it.  It  is  secret  influence  which  is  constantly  corrupt- 
ing government  and  securing  special  privileges  for  the  few  at  the 
expense  of  the  many.  The  man  who  advocates  a  thing  which  he 
believes  to  be  good  for  the  people  as  a  whole  has  no  reason  to 
conceal  his  purpose,  but  the  man  who  tries  to  secure  an  advantage 
which  he  knows  to  be  beneficial  to  some  class  or  combination  but 
hurtful  to  the  public,  naturally  and  necessarily  employs  stealth. 

Would  the  directors  of  a  railroad  company  adopt  and  publish 
a  resolution  designating  their  favorite  candidate  for  the  legislature, 
congress,  the  senate  or  the  bench?  Would  they  candidly  set  forth 
why  they  wanted  him  and  what  they  expected  of  him  after  they 
got  him?  And  yet  it  is  well  known  that  railroads  often  take  an 
active  part  in  the  selection  of  public  officials. 


The  Commoner  Condensed  n 

Would  the  directors  of  a  trust  adopt  and  publish  a  resolution 
naming  the  presidential  candidate  they  would  support  and  announc- 
ing the  contribution  they  would  make  to  the  campaign  fund  ?  And 
yet  it  is  certain  that  the  trusts  have  in  the  past  interested  them- 
selves in  campaigns. 

Eternal  vigilance  is  the  price  of  protection  against  bad  laws 
and  misrule  as  well  as  the  price  of  liberty.  Since  laws  are  made, 
construed  and  enforced  by  public  officials,  it  is  necessary  that 
great  care  should  be  exercised  in  the  selection  of  them  in  order 
that  they,  when  selected,  shall  guard  the  interests  of  the  whole 
people  and  not  be  the  mere  agents  of  some  corporation. 


ANOTHEK  ENDLESS  CHAIN. 

Secretary  Gage  recently  appeared  before  a  House  committee 
and  urged  the  enactment  of  a  law  specifically  requiring  silver  dol- 
lars to  be  redeemed  in  gold  on  demand.  He  argued  that,  as  the 
legal  tender  law  makes  silver  the  equivalent  of  gold,  the  govern- 
ment might  as  well  offer  to  furnish  gold  in  exchange  for  silver, 
as  to  allow  silver  to  be  presented  in  payment  of  revenues.  To  use 
his  own  expression : 

The  government  might  just  as  well  face  the  situation  and  meet 
this  silver  with  its  right  hand  at  the  front  door  as  to  take  it  with 
"the  left  hand  at  the  back  door. 

And  this  is  the  reasoning  of  a  financier!  He  sees  no  differ- 
ence between  a  credit  money  and  a  standard  money;  he  thinks 
it  a  matter  of  no  moment  that  his  plan  reduces  the  quantity  of 
basic  money  and  increases  the  quantity  of  redeemable  money — or, 
in  other  words,  contracts  the  foundation  and  expands  the  super- 
structure. 

But  of  this  later.  It  is  worth  while  to  point  out  at  this  time 
that  the  argument  now  made  by  Secretary  Gage  is  similar  to  the 
argument  which  led  to  the  custom  of  redeeming  treasury  notes  in 
gold,  although  the  practice  of  redeeming  treasury  notes  in  gold 
simply  surrendered  the  government's  option  to  select  the  coin  and 
did  not  convert  a  standard  money  into  a  credit  money.  After 
the  custom  of  redeeming  in  gold  was  established  the  financiers 


12  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

pointed  out  that  the  redemption  and  re-issue  of  treasury  notes 
formed  what  they  called  an  endless  chain  for  the  draining  of  the 
treasury.  This  argument  was  used  with  great  effect  in  securing 
the  repeal  of  the  purchasing  clause  of  the  Sherman  Law.  As  soon 
as  that  legislation  was  accomplished  the  financiers  set  to  work  to 
secure  the  retirement  of  the  greenbacks  as  well  as  the  treasury 
notes  on  the  ground  that  the  greenbacks  also  constituted  an  end- 
less chain  when  redeemed  and  re-issued.  Now  that  the  greenbacks 
and  treasury  notes  are  in  process  of  retirement  an  attack  is  to  be 
made  upon  the  silver  dollar. 

The  argument  that  worked  so  well  against  government  paper 
is  now  to  be  used  against  coin.  The  present  law  does  not  require 
the  redemption  of  silver  dollars ;  a  bill  containing  such  a  provision 
passed  the  House  a  year  ago  but  a  republican  Senate  was  not  will- 
ing to  go  on  record  as  favoring  such  a  measure  at  the  beginning 
of  a  presidential  campaign,  so  the  matter  was  left  to  executive 
construction. 

Now  that  the  election  is  over  the  republican  leaders  are  a  little 
more  bold  and  will  probably  make  the  law  specific  in  requiring 
redemption. 

Next  will  come  the  demand  for  the  retirement  of  silver  dollars 
by  an  issue  of  bonds,  or  for  a  withdrawal  of  their  legal  tender 
qualities. 

As  a  reason  for  retiring  silver  we  will  be  told  that  a  silver  dol- 
lar redeemed  and  then  re-issued  forms  another  endless  chain.  It 
will  be  pointed  out  that  there  is  no  limit  to  the  amount  of  gold 
that  may  be  drained  from  the  treasury  if  silver  dollars  are  paid 
out  again  after  they  are  once  redeemed.  The  same  argument 
made  against  the  greenback  and  treasury  note  will  be  repeated 
against  a  redeemable  silver  dollar. 

The  redemption  of  the  standard  silver  dollar  is  the  first  step 
toward  its  ultimate  retirement,  and  those  who  are  opposed  to  its 
retirement  will  not  be  induced  to  aid  in  making  it  redeemable. 
When  the  gold  standard  is  complete,  gold  will  be  the  only  legal 
tender  money  and  bank  notes  the  only  paper  money.  Until  this 
end  is  reached  the  financiers  will  deprecate  any  agitation  of  the 
money  question  during  campaigns  and  will  spend  the  years  be- 
tween campaigns  urging  legislative  enactments  in  furtherance  of 
their  plans. 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 


TRIAL  BY  JURY  DENIED. 

The  President,  in  his  instructions  to  the  Philippine  commis- 
sioners, is  careful  to  exclude  trial  by  jury  from  the  blessings  con- 
ferred upon  the  Nation's  oriental  subjects.  The  omission  is  the 
more  noticeable  because  the  sixth  amendment  to  the  Constitution 
is  quoted  entire  with  the  exception  of  the  clause  guaranteeing 
trial  "by  an  impartial  jury  of  the  state  and  district  wherein  the 
crime  shall  have  been  committed,  which  district  shall  have  been 
previously  ascertained  by  law." 

Below  will  be  found  the  sixth  amendment  and  the  instruction 
taken  from  it : 


THE  PRESIDENT'S  INSTRUCTION". 

In  all  criminal  prosecutions 
the  accused  shall  enjoy  the  right 
to  a  speedy  and  public  trial;  to 
be  informed  of  the  nature  and 
cause  of  the  accusation;  to  be 
confronted  with  witnesses 
against  him;  to  have  compul- 
sory process  for  obtaining  wit- 
nesses in  his  favor  and  to  have 
the  assistance  of  counsel  for  his 
defense. 


THE   SIXTH   AMENDMENT. 

In  all  criminal  prosecutions 
the  accused  shall  enjoy  the  right 
to  a  speedy  and  public  trial,  BY 

AN  IMPARTIAL  JURY  OF  THE 
STATE  AND  DISTRICT  WHEREIN 
THE  CRIME  SHALL  HAVE  BEEN 
COMMITTED,  WHICH  DISTRICT 
SHALL  HAVE  BEEN  PREVIOUSLY 
ASCERTAINED  BY  LAW,  and  to 

be  informed  of  the  nature  and 
cause  of  the  accusation;  to  be 
confronted  with  the  witnesses 
against  him ;  to  have  compulsory 
process  for  obtaining  witnesses 
in  his  favor,  and  to  have  the 
assistance  of  counsel  for  his  de- 
fense. 


One  by  one  the  safe-guards  of  the  Constitution  are  being  aban- 
doned; one  by  one  the  doctrines  of  imperialism  are  being  adopted. 
There  is  not  a  vital  principle  of  government,  heretofore  considered 
sacred,  which  must  not  ultimately  be  abandoned  if  this  Nation  con- 
tinues to  tax  subjects  without  representation  and  govern  them  with- 
out the  consent  of  the  governed. 


14  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


TOLSTOI  ON  IMPEEIALISM. 

Tolstoi  is  credited  with  a  severe  criticism  of  American  imperial- 
ism. He  is  quoted  as  saying : 

You  Americans  are  worse  than  the  Mohammedans.  They  preach 
war  and  they  fight;  you  preach  liberty  and  peace  and  yet  you  go 
out  to  conquer  through  war. 

He  believes  in  "strenuous  life/'  but  he  thinks  that  human  ac- 
tivity can  better  be  employed  doing  good  than  in  killing  people. 

Eussia's  philosopher  is  wise  enough  to  see  and  know  that  com- 
mercialism is  the  moving  spirit  behind  imperialism  and  that  "duty 
and  destiny"  are  only  masks. 


THE  PRESIDENTIAL  TERM. 

The  suggestion  made  by  ex-President  Cleveland,  to  the  effect 
that  the  presidential  term  should  be  extended  to  six  years  and 
the  president  made  ineligible  for  re-election,  has  excited  discussion. 
The  latter  part  of  the  proposition  has  met  with  the  more  cordial 
reception.  There  seems  to  be  a  widespread  opinion  that  a  president 
should  be  limited  to  one  term  in  order  to  prevent  his  using  the  first 
term  to  secure  a  re-nomination. 

President  Jackson  suggested  this  limitation  in  his  first  inaugural 
message. 

Mr.  Hayes  in  1876,  in  his  letter  accepting  the  republican  nom- 
ination said: 

The  declaration  of  principles  by  the  Cincinnati  convention  makes 
no  announcement  in  favor  of  a  single  presidential  term.  I  do  not 
assume  to  add  to  that  declaration,  but  believing  that  the  restora- 
tion of  the  civil  service  to  the  system  established  by  Washington 
and  followed  by  the  early  presidents  can  be  best  accomplished  by 
an  executive  officer  who  is  under  no  temptation  to  use  the  patronage 
of  his  office  to  promote  his  own  re-election,  I  desire  to  perform 
what  I  regard  as  a  duty  in  stating  now  my  inflexible  purpose,  if 
elected,  not  to  be  a  candidate  for  election  to  a  second  term. 

Mr.  Cleveland,  in  his  first  letter  of  acceptance  stated,  in  even 
stronger  language,  the  objections  to  a  second  term,  saying: 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  15 

When  an  election  to  office  shall  be  the  selection  by  the  voters 
of  one  of  their  number  to  assume  for  a  time  a  public  trust  instead 
of  his  dedication  to  the  profession  of  politics;  when  the  holders  of 
the  ballot,  quickened  by  a  sense  of  duty,  shall  avenge  truth  betrayed 
and  pledges  broken,  and  when  the  suffrage  shall  be  altogether  free 
and  uncorrupted,  the  full  realization  of  a  government  by  the  people 
will  be  at  hand.  And  of  the  means  to  this  end,  no  one  would, 
in  my  judgment,  be  more  effective  than  an  amendment  to  the  Con- 
stitution disqualifying  the  president  from  re-election. 

When  we  consider  the  patronage  of  this  great  office,  the  allure- 
ments of  power,  the  temptation  to  retain  public  place  once  gained, 
and,  more  than  all,  the  availability  a  party  finds  in  an  incumbent 
whom  a  horde  of  office-holders,  with  zeal  born  of  benefits  received 
and  fostered  by  the  hope  of  favors  yet  to  come,  stand  ready  to  aid 
with  money  and  trained  political  service,  we  recognize  in  the  eligi- 
bility of  the  president  for  re-election  a  most  serious  danger  to 
that  calm,  deliberate  and  intelligent  political  action  which  must 
characterize  a  government  by  the  people. 

Human  nature  is  as  yet  too  frail  to  withstand  the  temptation 
to  use  for  selfish  purposes  the  great  patronage  of  the  executive. 

If  it  is  argued  that  a  nation  might  be  in  such  a  crisis  that  it 
could  ill  afford  a  change  in  the  administration,  it  may  be  said  in 
reply,  first,  that  the  same  argument  could  be  made  at  the  close  of 
a  second  term,  and,  second,  that  when  the  nation  reaches  a  condi- 
tion where  only  one  man  out  of  the  whole  population  is  able  to 
assume  and  properly  discharge  the  duties  of  the  executive  it  will 
scarcely  be  worth  saving. 

As  to  the  lengthening  of  the  term  considerable  difference  of 
opinion  has  developed.  The  principal  affirmative  argument  is  that 
business  interests  are  disturbed  by  a  presidential  election.  If  this 
argument  is  to  have  a  controlling  influence  we  might  as  well  choose 
the  executive  for  life,  or,  in  order  to  reduce  the  disturbance  to  a 
minimum,  establish  an  hereditary  succession.  There  are  political 
reasons  in  favor  of  the  present  length  which  outweigh  any  business 
considerations. 

Jefferson  was  an  advocate  of  frequent  elections.  In  a  letter 
written  to  Samuel  Adams,  in  1800,  he  said : 

A  government  by  representatives,  elected  by  the  people  at  short 
periods,  was  our  object;  and  our  maxim  at  that  day  was  "where 
annual  election  ends,  tyranny  begins ;"  nor  have  our  departures  from 
it  been  sanctioned  by  the  happiness  of  their  effects. 


16  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Sixteen  years  later  he  said : 

The  rights  of  the  people  to  the  exercise  and  fruits  of  their  own 
industry  can  never  be  protected  against  the  selfishness  of  rulers,  not 
subject  to  their  control  at  short  periods. 

The  fact  that  commercial  reasons  are  deemed  sufficient  with  some 
to  justify  the  surrender  of  a  principle  absolutely  necessary  for  the 
protection  of  the  public  shows  the  dangerous  pre-eminence  given  to 
money  and  money  making. 

To  lengthen  the  presidential  term  is  simply  to  enlarge  the  stake 
for  which  great  interests  play.  The  trusts  could  increase  their  cam- 
paign contributions  fifty  per  cent,  if  they  could  secure  control  of 
an  administration  for  six  years  instead  of  four. 

Short  terms  are  necessary  not  only  to  protect  the  people  from 
their  public  servants,  but  also  to  moderate  disappointment  and 
discontent.  The  sooner  the  people  can  hope  for  remedy  the  more 
patiently  do  they  submit  to  that  which  they  consider  error  or  in- 
justice. 

A  four  years  term  is  long  enough  for  a  good  president  and  too 
long  for  a  bad  one. 


THE  WAGES  OF  SIN. 

Press  dispatches  announce  that  Neely,  the  embezzler  of  Cuban 
postal  funds,  who,  by  the  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court,  is  to  be 
sent  back  to  the  island  for  trial,  has  broken  down  and  is  a  complete 
wreck.  If  the  report  is  true,  it  is  only  another  illustration  of  the 
fact  that  the  wages  of  sin  is  death.  Aside  from  the  moral  principle 
involved,  nothing  pays  a  larger  dividend  of  suffering  on  the  in- 
vestment than  a  breach  of  trust. 

^The  gnawing  of  conscience  and  the  fear  of  detection  rob  the 
offender  of  happiness  before  he  is  found  out,  and  when  his  wrong- 
doing is  discovered,  personal  disgrace  and  the  anguish  of  friends 
embitter  his  life.  And  yet,  in  spite  of  the  warnings  which  come 
from  every  age  and  from  every  country,  scarcely  a  day  passes  but 
some  trusted  employe  in  private  life  or  in  public  position  is  blazoned 
forth  as  a  defaulter. 

Most  defalcations  grow  out  of  the  temporary  use  of  trust  funds 
for  personal  advantage,  when  the  trustee  feels  sure  that  he  can  re- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  17 

turn  the  amount  on  demand.  Everybody  should  be  taught  the  rule 
that  no  one  can  safely  use  trust  money  as  a  private  fund,  no  mat- 
ter how  certain  he  may  be  of  his  ability  to  make  good  the  loan. 
Trust  funds  and  private  money  should  never  be  mingled. 


SUBSIDIZED  INSTRUCTION. 

It  is  a  bad  sign  when  the  founder  of  a  university  seeks  to  domi- 
nate the  mind  of  the  teacher  of  that  university.  It  is  a  good  sign 
when  the  teacher  rebels  and  surrenders  his  salary  in  preference  to 
surrendering  his  principles. 

Stanford  university  has  lost  six  professors,  and  the  upheaval 
is  the  result  of  the  attempt  of  the  founder's  widow  to  regulate  the 
convictions  of  some  of  the  instructors  in  the  institution. 

In  May,  1900,  Professor  Eoss  attended  a  mass  meeting  held  in 
San  Francisco  for  the  purpose  of  protesting  against  the  coming  of 
Japanese  laborers  to  this  country.  He  delivered  an  address  on  this 
occasion  in  which  he  insisted  on  the  exclusion  of  the  Japanese  as 
a  measure  of  wisdom  in  the  light  of  our  experience  with  the  Chi- 
nese. It  seems  that  for  many  years  Senator  Stanford,  who  was 
president  of  the  Southern  Pacific  railroad,  had  the  habit  of  im- 
porting coolie  labor,  and  for  this  he  was  frequently  denounced  by 
those  opposed  to  that  labor.  This,  it  is  said,  explains  Mrs.  Stan- 
ford's sensitiveness  on  this  point. 

It  may  have  been  that  Mrs.  Stanford  was  further  prejudiced 
against  Professor  Eoss  because  she  had  been  informed  that  he  was 
an  advocate  of  bimetallism  and  in  favor  of  restricting  the  power 
of  corporations.  It  has  never  been  claimed,  however,  that  Professor 
Ross  ever  carried  his  politics  into  the  classroom.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  is  said  of  him  that  in  his  lectures  to  his  classes  he  was 
eminently  fair,  invariably  presenting  both  sides  of  every  question 
with  which  he  had  to  deal. 

Although  Professor  Eoss'  notions  had  greatly  prejudiced  him  in 
Mrs.  Stanford's  eyes,  he  was  a  favorite  not  only  with  the  presi- 
dent of  the  university,  but  with  all  with  whom  he  came  in  con- 
tact. But  as  soon  as  the  report  of  his  anti-Japanese  speech  reached 
Mrs.  Stanford  she  insisted  upon  his  resignation,  and  the  resigna- 
tion was  forthcoming.  Subsequently,  Professor  George  E.  How- 
ard, of  the  same  university,  took  occasion  to  criticise  the  policy  of 


1 8  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

interfering  with  the  liberty  of  speech  in  university  discussion. 
Professor  Howard  boldly  declared  that  Professor  Boss'  dismissal 
was  "a  blow  aimed  directly  at  academic  freedom,  and  to  the  cause 
of  American  education."  He  added : 

The  blow  does  not  come  directly  from  the  founder.  It  really 
proceeds  from  the  sinister  spirit  of  social  bigotry  and  commercial 
intolerance,  which  is  just  now  the  deadliest  foe  of  American  democ- 
racy. In  order  that  we  may  attain  the  highest  ideal  of  social, 
moral,  and  intellectual  life  our  university  must  be  the  inviolable 
sanctuary  of  free  inquiry. 

Soon  after  Professor  Boss'  dismissal,  Professor  Aldrich  resigned, 
declaring  that  he  could  not  teach  in  Stanford  university  under  the 
circumstances. 

As  soon  as  Professor  Howard's  remarks  became  known  to  Mrs. 
Stanford,  she  asked  for  an  apology  from  the  professor  for  his 
criticism  of  the  university's  course  toward  Boss.  Professor  How- 
ard defended  himself  by  saying  that  he  had  simply  made  a  fair 
presentation  of  the  influences  that  resulted  in  Professor  Boss'  dis- 
missal. He  declined  to  apologize,  and  on  Monday  of  last  week, 
he  was  informed  that  his  resignation  would  be  accepted,  but  was 
given  the  privilege  of  remaining  until  the  end  of  the  term.  He 
refused  to  avail  himself  of  this  privilege,  and  immediately  left  the 
university. 

On  Tuesday  Professor  Hudson,  of  the  English  department,  and 
Professor  Little,  of  the  Chair  of  Mathematics,  resigned.  On 
Wednesday  Professor  Spencer,  of  the  History  department,  ten- 
dered his  resignation — all  giving  as  a  reason  that  they  did  not  care 
to  teach  in  a  university  where  liberty  of  speech  was  curtailed  as 
it  was  at  Stanford. 

It  is  significant  that  the  six  instructors  who  thus  left  Stanford 
university  were  among  the  most  popular  and  successful  teachers 
in  the  institution.  It  is  no  surprise  to  be  told  that  this  university 
has  lost  considerable  prestige  because  of  the  attempt  to  control 
the  convictions  of  teachers.  The  student  has  small  prospect  of 
acquiring  valuable  information  when  the  conscience  and  convic- 
tion of  his  teacher  are  dominated  by  one  whose  power  and  author- 
ity come  exclusively  from  financial  connection  with  the  school. 
If  the  men  and  women  whose  lives  are  dedicated  to  the  instruction 
of  the  young  are  not  to  speak  what  they  conceive  to  be  the  truth. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  19 

for  fear  of  offending  the  university  financiers,  then  little  care  need 
be  exercised  as  to  the  character  and  ability  of  university  instruc- 
tors. A  college  diploma  and  a  post-graduate  course  in  a  corpora- 
tion atmosphere  is,  then,  all  that  is  necessary  to  fit  a  man  or 
woman  for  a  college  professorship.  But  if  the  young  people  who 
attend  our  universities  are  to  make  the  most  of  their  opportuni- 
ties, then  it  is  essential  that  men  and  women  who  instruct  them 
shall  have  the  brains  to  think  for  themselves  and  the  courage  to 
express  their  opinions  without  fear  or  favor. 

The  policy  that  resulted  in  the  six  resignations  at  Stanford 
university  may  endear  that  institution  to  those  who  imagine  that 
the  champions  of  class  privilege  are  the  only  ones  who  have  the 
right  to  independent  thought,  but  among  men  and  women  who  be- 
lieve that  the  successful  college  must  have  as  its  professors  men  of 
thought  and  conviction  in  order  to  produce  results,  Stanford  uni- 
versity will  not  take  high  rank.  And  it  is  no  wonder  that  to-day 
all  California  is  blushing  for  the  policy  of  a  university  that  other- 
wise might  be  a  credit  and  advantage  to  the  great  state  in  which 
it  is  located. 


TOWNE'S  GEEAT  SPEECH. 

Just  before  closing  his  brief  senatorial  career,  Mr.  Towne  de- 
livered a  speech  which  may  fairly  be  regarded  as  the  best  of  his 
many  excellent  productions.  Mr.  James  Creelman,  the  distin- 
guished newspaper  correspondent,  describing  the  delivery  of  the 
speech  and  the  immediate  effect  produced,  says  that  no  speech  de- 
livered in  the  senate  in  recent  years  has  created  such  a  profound 
impression  or  brought  to  its  author  such  general  and  hearty 
congratulations.  As  an  arraignment  of  imperialism  the  speech 
has  never  been  surpassed.  The  following  is  the  peroration: 

I  do  not  wish  to  convey  the  impression  that  in  my  opinion  the 
present  policy  will  at  one  fell  swoop  convert  this  republic  into  an 
empire  in  fact.  But  I  do  say  that  the  seeds  of  empire  lurk  in  this 
policy,  and  that  time,  and  favoring  environment  will  and  must 
bring  them  to  their  flower  and  fruit  unless  we  make  a  seasonable 
prevention.  God  speed  the  day  when  the  American  people,  whose 
annals  blaze  with  records  of  unequaled  heroism,  and  who  again 
and  always,  if  some  great  cause  demand  it,  would  freely  pay  with 


20  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

life  itself  the  price  of  its  defense,  shall  have  the  moral  courage  to 
do  their  civil  duty — a  rarer  thing  than  to  face  undaunted  the 
cannon's  mouth — and  with  their  sovereign  voice  declare  that  this 
unholy  war  for  greed  and  empire  shall  be  stopped,  and  that  no 
soldier  of  the  United  States  shall  ever  again  in  all  our  history  be 
sent  to  other  lands  to  war  on  people  fighting  for  their  liberty. 

I  shall  not  willingly  cease  to  dream  of  a  twentieth  century  de- 
voted to  the  demonstration,  the  first  and  only  one  in  history,  that  a 
government  of  the  people,  for  the  people,  and  by  the  people  need 
not  perish  from  the  earth.  There  is  an  inspiration  in  the  thought 
that  to  our  beloved  country  may  be  reserved  the  culminating  glory 
of  the  ages  in  crowning  with  success  the  long  experiment  of  right- 
eous self-government. 


THE  CUBAN  CONSTITUTION. 

The  Cuban  constitution,  as  it  has  been  drafted  and  will  probably 
be  adopted,  is,  in  many  respects,  similar  to  that  of  the  United 
States.  Cuba  is  declared  to  be  "a  sovereign  and  independent  state 
under  a  republican  form  of  government."  The  provision  for  citi- 
zenship is  as  liberal  as  ours.  The  guarantees  of  personal  liberty, 
religious  freedom,  freedom  of  speech  and  of  the  press,  are  similar 
to  those  in  our  Constitution.  The  president  is  to  be  elected  by  a 
direct  popular  vote,  "an  absolute  majority  thereof  cast  on  one 
eingle  day"  being  essential  to  election.  The  term  of  office  is  for  a 
period  of  four  years.  The  president  may  be  re-elected,  but  is  in- 
eligible for  a  third  consecutive  term.  The  vice-president  has  pow- 
ers and  authority  similar  to  ours.  The  congress  is  to  be  composed 
of  a  senate  and  house  of  representatives.  The  senate  will  consist 
of  thirty-six  members,  elected  for  six  years,  one-third  retiring  every 
two  years.  The  house  will  have  one  member  for  every  25,000  in- 
habitants, or  fraction  above  12.500.  The  house  members  are  to 
be  elected  for  four  years,  one-half  the  membership  retiring  every 
two  years.  The  congress  has  powers  similar  to  ours.  The  judicial 
power  is  vested  in  a  supreme  court,  and  it  is  provided  that  "jus- 
tice shall  be  ministered  gratuitously."  The  judges  of  the1  court 
are  to  be  appointed  by  the  president  with  the  approval  of  the  sen- 
ate and  are  to  hold  office  during  good  behavior.  Each  of  the  six 
provinces  is  to  have  a  governor  elected  for  three  years  and  a  "de- 
partmental assembly"  elected  for  three  years.  These  provinces  are 
given  the  right  of  independent  action  in  their  local  affairs,  pro- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  21 

vided  that  no  law  is  enacted  inconsistent  with  the  Cuban  constitu- 
tion. 

Municipalities  are  given  powers  and  privileges  not  enjoyed  by 
towns  in  the  United  States.  Here  the  municipality  is  recognized 
as  a  creature  of  the  state,  having  no  powers  which  the  legislature 
does  not  bestow.  But  the  Cuban  constitution  prohibits  the  "de- 
partmental assemblies"  or  province  legislatures  from  enacting  any 
law  that  shall  be  antagonistic  "to  that  which  pertains  to  the  in- 
herent right  of  the  municipalities."  The  most  liberal  home  rule 
is  given  to  the  towns,  and  these  towns  are  immediately  governed 
by  a  mayor  and  board  of  councilmen.  The  Cuban  congress  is  given 
authority  over  telegraphs  and  railroads. 

On  the  whole,  the  draft  of  the  Cuban  constitution  is  a  meritori- 
ous document.  Such  errors  as  it  has  are  for  the  most  part  copied 
from  our  own  Constitution,  and  we  are  not  in  position  to  criticise 
them  until  we  adopt  amendments  here. 

The  people  demonstrated  their  right  to  liberty  by  their  willing- 
ness to  fight  for  it.  The  proceedings  of  Cuba's  constitutional  con- 
vention have  demonstrated  that  the  fortunes  of  the  people  of  that 
island  are  more  secure  in  the  hands  of  Cuban  statesmen  than  they 
would  be  in  the  custody  of  American  politicians. 


POPULAK  ELECTION  OF  SENATORS. 

While  it  may  be  impossible  to  secure  favorable  action  at  this 
time,  an  effort  ought  to  be  made  in  the  Senate  to  bring  up  for 
consideration  the  resolution  looking  to  the  election  of  United 
States  senators  by  a  direct  vote  of  the  people. 

The  House  of  Representatives  in  both  the  Fifty-second  and 
Fifty-third  Congresses  adopted  resolutions  submitting  the  neces- 
sary constitutional  amendment,  but  each  time  the  Senate  defeated 
action.  That  there  is  a  popular  demand  for  the  change  is  evident 
from  the  fact  that  a  similar  resolution  passed  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives of  the  present  Congress  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote. 

In  1868  President  Johnson,  first  in  a  special  and  later  in  an  an- 
nual message,  urged  the  submission  of  an  amendment  placing  the 
election  of  United  States  senators  in  the  hands  of  the  people  at 
large,  and  from  that  day  to  this  there  has  been  a  constant  growth 
of  sentiment  in  favor  of  this  reform.  Wherever  the  matter  has  been 


22  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

acted  upon  by  the  people  an  overwhelming  majority  has  been  re- 
corded in  favor  of  the  proposition.  The  affirmative  arguments 
may  be  summed  up  as  follows: 

First.  The  people  have  a  right  to  speak  through  senators  of 
their  own  selection. 

Second.  Corruption  and  corporate  influence  are  bringing  scan- 
dal and  disgrace  upon  senatorial  elections  and  impeaching  the  in- 
tegrity of  a  legislative  body  which  ought  to  stand  above  suspicion. 

Third.  Senatorial  elections,  as  conducted  at  present,  interfere 
with  the  legitimate  work  of  state  legislatures. 

Whatever  causes  may  have  led  to  the  adoption  of  the  existing 
method  of  selecting  senators,  experience  has  not  only  shown  that  the 
people  can  be  trusted  with  the  direct  choice  of  their  public  serv- 
ants, but  it  has  also  demonstrated  that  the  nearer  the  Government 
is  brought  to  the  voters  the  better  it  is  for  both  the  Government 
and  the  people.  There  is  more  virtue  in  the  masses  than  ever  finds 
expression  through  their  representatives,  because  representatives 
are  influenced,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  by  their  personal  in- 
terests. 

It  is  true  that  even  with  popular  elections  the  nominations  would 
be  made  by  conventions,  but  the  fact  that  the  voters  would  after- 
wards sit  in  judgment  upon  the  work  of  the  delegates  would  be 
a  constant  restraint. 

The  last  few  years  have  furnished  so  many  instances  of  corporate 
influence  or  corruption  operating  in  the  election  of  senators  that  no 
elaboration  of  the  second  argument  is  necessary.  It  has  become 
apparent  to  the  most  casual  observer  that  candidates  backed  by  rail- 
roads and  other  large  corporations  have  an  enormous  advantage 
over  men  who  must  rely  upon  their  personal  popularity  or  worth. 

While  in  some  instances  money  has  been  used  to  purchase  votes 
outright,  the  method  more  frequently  employed  is  to  place  the  legis- 
lators under  obligation  to  a  particular  candidate  by  pecuniary  aid 
furnished  during  the  campaign.  Organized  capital  is  also  able  to 
bring  pressure  to  bear  upon  legislators  by  the  bestowal  of  favors. 

But  aside  from  the  arguments  which  affect  the  character  of  the 
men  selected,  the  best  interests  of  the  state  require  that  the  legis- 
lators shall  be  relieved  of  the  duty  of  electing  senators,  because 
legislative  candidates  cannot  now  be  voted  for  according  to  their 
fitness  for  legislative  work.  As  one-third  of  the  United  States 
senators  are  elected  every  two  years,  two  legislative  sessions  (where 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  23 

they  are  biennial)  out  of  every  three  are  called  upon  to  settle  a 
senatorial  controversy  and  this  controversy,  as  a  rule,  overshadows 
all  other  matters. 

When  the  contest  is  prolonged,  the  regular  business  is  inter- 
rupted by  daily  balloting  and  attention  is  diverted  from  state 
affairs. 

Two  years  ago  there  were  deadlocks  in  four  states,  and  this  year 
two  legislatures  are  having  obstinate  struggles. 

Some  object  to  the  proposed  change  on  the  ground  that  the 
Constitution  should  not  be  disturbed,  but  this  is  always  the  argu- 
ment of  those  who  are  satisfied  with  things  as  they  are.  The  best 
friends  of  the  Constitution  are  those  who  desire  to  strengthen  it  in 
the  affections  of  the  people  by  making  it  conform  to  the  wishes  of 
the  people. 

There  is  no  force  in  the  objection  urged  by  some  that  a  senator 
should  be  selected  by  a  legislature  because  he  represents  the  state. 
This  draws  a  distinction  between  the  state  and  the  people  of  the 
state.  Surely  the  choice  of  a  majority  of  the  people  would  be  more 
truly  a  representative  of  the  state  than  the  choice  of  a  minority. 

It  will  be  a  great  victory  for  popular  government  when  the  selec- 
tion of  United  States  senators  is  taken  away  from  legislatures 
and  given  into  the  custody  of  the  voters  where  it  rightfully  be- 
longs. 


LIBEETY  A  SUPKEME  GOOD. 

Buckle,  whose  "History  of  Civilization  in  England"  has  given 
him  a  permanent  place  in  the  literary  world,  was  a  passionate  lover 
of  liberty.  In  one  of  his  productions,  to  be  found  in  the  "World's 
Best  Essays,"  he  expresses  himself  with  so  much  clearness  and 
emphasis  that  an  extract  is  given  below.  It  is  worth  while  for 
the  reader  to  compare  the  vigorous  logic  of  the  historian  with  the 
complacent  philosophy  of  the  present-day  imperialists,  who  assume 
that  a  defeated'  monarch  can  bargain,  sell  and  convey,  for  pecu- 
niary consideration,  the  bodies,  souls  and  inalienable  rights  of 
eight  millions  of  Filipinos. 

Buckle  says: 

Liberty  is  the  one  thing  most  essential  to  the  right  development 
of  individuals,  and  to  the  real  grandeur  of  nations.  It  is  a  product 
of  knowledge  when  knowledge  advances  in  a  healthy  and  regular 


24  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

manner;  but  if  under  certain  unhappy  circumstances  it  is  opposed 
by  what  seems  to  be  knowledge,  then,  in  God's  name,  let  knowledge 
perish  and  liberty  be  preserved.  Liberty  is  not  a  means  to  an 
end,  it  is  an  end  itself.  To  secure  it,  to  enlarge  it,  and  to  diffuse 
it,  should  be  the  main  object  of  all  social  arrangements  and  of 
all  political  contrivances.  None  but  a  pedant  or  a  tyrant  can 
put  science  or  literature  in  competition  with  it.  Within  certain 
limits,  and  very  small  limits  too,  it  is  the  inalienable  prerogative 
of  man,  of  which  no  force  of  circumstances  and  no  lapse  of  time 
can  deprive  him.  He  has  no  right  to  barter  it  away  even  from 
himself,  still  less  from  his  children.  It  is  the  foundation  of  all 
respect,  and  without  it  the  great  doctrine  of  moral  responsibility 
would  degenerate  into  a  lie  and  a  juggle.  It  is  a  sacred  deposit, 
and  the  love  of  it  is  a  holy  instinct  engraven  on  our  hearts. 


MISTAKEN  IDENTITY. 

The  political  editor  of  the  Cincinnati  Times-Star,  feeling  it 
necessary  to  register  his  disapproval  of  THE  COMMONER,  seized  his 
pencil  and  dashed  off  the  following  brilliant  criticism : 

In  initiating  his  editorial  duties  Mr.  Bryan  is  as  unfortunate 
in  his  choice  of  quotations  as  in  his  political  speeches.  The  last 
man  of  American  public  men  whom  Mr.  Bryan  should  quote  is 
Webster.  There  is  not  a  principle  which  the  great  Massachusetts 
statesman  stood  for  which  Mr.  Bryan  represents.  *  *  * 

Mr.  Bryan  errs  whenever  he  attempts  to  quote  Webster  in  sup- 
port of  any  of  his  political  ideas.  The  use  of  the  phrasing  of  a 
partial  sentence,  selected  without  regard  to  the  center  thought,  is 
a  favorite  trick  of  Mr.  Bryan,  but  an  unfortunate  one,  because  he 
has  almost  invariably  chosen  a  phrase  which  was  inappropriate 
when  read  in  a  fuller  light. 

When  our  much  esteemed  but  incautious  contemporary  can  with- 
draw himself  from  the  contemplation  of  Webster  the  Statesman 
long  enough  to  examine  a  compilation  prepared  by  Webster  the 
Lexicographer,  he  will  find  the  definition  given  in  the  first  edi- 
torial of  THE  COMMONER.  The  language  quoted  was  not,  as  he 
intimates,  taken  out  of  its  connection. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  the  writings  of  Noah  Webster,  of  Dic- 
tionary fame,  are  marred  by  frequent  change  of  subject,  and  seem 
somewhat  disconnected,  but  while  they  lack  the  stately  and  flowing 
style  of  the  Massachusetts  orator,  the  editor  of  the  Times-Star 
will  find  them  worthy  of  occasional  perusal. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  25 


II. 
MILITAKISM. 

During  the  last  campaign  the  democrats  pointed  out  that  re- 
publican success  would  encourage  the  party  in  power  to  increase 
the  standing  army.  The  republicans  evaded  the  question  for  the 
most  part,  and,  when  they  were  challenged  to  meet  it,  resorted  to 
subterfuge  and  deception.  They  claimed  that  the  army  then  in 
service  was  made  necessary  by  the  war  in  the  Philippines  and 
called  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  increase  expired  by  limitation 
in  1901.  They  pretended  to  believe  that  the  army  could  be  re- 
duced before  that  time  if  the  republicans  won  at  the  election  and 
the  Filipinos  were  assured  that  there  would  be  no  change  in  the 
administration.  These  arguments  ought  not  to  have  misled  any 
one  because  the  President,  two  months  before  hostilities  broke  out 
at  Manila,  asked  for  authority  to  raise  the  army  to  one  hundred 
thousand. 

A  republican  House  of  Eepresentatives  passed  a  bill  giving  him 
the  authority,  and  the  democrats  and  their  populist  and  silver 
republican  allies  in  the  Senate  secured  the  limitation  which  the 
republicans  were  afterwards  so  anxious  to  hide  behind.  The  elec- 
tion resulted  in  a  republican  victory  even  more  pronounced  than 
the  leaders  of  that  party  had  expected,  but  the  war  in  the  Phil- 
ippines did  not  terminate  and  then  the  imperialists  came  out  from 
under  cover  and  boldly  demanded  an  increase  in  the  military 
establishment.  A  bill  was  introduced,  hurried  through  the  House 
and  Senate  and  is  now  a  law.  The  title  of  it  is  a  confession  of 
cowardice.  It  is  not  a  bill  to  increase  the  SIZE  of  the  standing 
army,  but  a  bill  "To  increase  the  EFFICIENCY  of  the  permanent 
military  establishment  of  the  United  States."  It  provides  that  the 
army  of  the  United  States  shall  consist  of  fifteen  regiments  of 
cavalry,  a  corps  of  artillery,  thirty  regiments  of  infantry,  one 
lieutenant-general,  six  major  generals,  fifteen  brigadier  generals, 
etc.,  etc.,  etc.  Each  regiment  of  cavalry  and  infantry  has  one 
colonel,  one  lieutenant-colonel,  three  majors,  fifteen  captains,  fifteen 


26  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

first  lieutenants  and  fifteen  second  lieutenants,  besides  sergeants, 
sergeant-majors,  corporals,  etc. — the  etc.  including  among  other 
persons,  privates,  ranging  from  forty-three  to  seventy-six  in  each 
cavalry  troop,  and  from  forty-eight  to  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
seven  in  each  infantry  company.  The  President  is  given  the 
dangerous  power  to  increase  the  army  to  the  maximum.  The  num- 
ber of  enlisted  men  is  limited  to  one  hundred  thousand.  The 
maximum  of  enlisted  men  may  include  twelve  thousand  natives 
to  be  enlisted  in  the  Philippine  Islands  if  the  President  sees  fit 
to  enlist  them. 

If  any  one  will  read  the  bill  complete  and  count  the  number 
of  generals,  colonels,  lieutenant-colonels,  majors,  captains,  first 
lieutenants,  second  lieutenants,  adjutants,  inspectors,  quarter-mas- 
ters and  other  officers  with  life  tenure,  he  can  understand  some- 
thing of  the  force  which  militarism  can  command  in  any  legisla- 
tive contest  with  the  taxpayers. 

It  is  easier  to  increase  an  army,  especially  the  official  part,  than 
reduce  it,  and  the  people  have  before  them  a  difficult  task,  but  the 
burdens  and  menace  of  militarism  can  be  relied  upon  to  arouse 
the  people.  When  the  awakening  comes  it  will  be  found  that  the 
people  who  profit  by  a  large  military  establishment,  however  power- 
ful in  present  influence,  are  insignificant  in  numbers  compared 
with  those  who  are  injured. 


A  WOETHY  AMBITION. 

Hon.  Tom  L.  Johnson,  of  Cleveland,  0.,  announces  that  he  has 
retired  permanently  from  business  and  intends  to  devote  all  of 
his  time  and  energy  to  social  and  political  questions,  with  a  view 
to  aiding  in  the  enforcement  of  the  doctrine  of  equal  and  exact 
justice  to  all  and  special  privileges  to  none. 

It  is  a  worthy  ambition,  and  he  carries  into  his  work  an  honest 
heart,  a  clear  head,  an  eloquent  tongue  and  an  enthusiasm  which 
comes  from  deep  conviction. 

During  his  service  in  Congress  he  gave  evidence  of  both  ability 
and  fidelity  to  the  public  weal,  and  his  present  determination  is 
not  a  surprise  to  those  who  have  known  him  intimately. 

Mr.  Johnson,  though  comparatively  young,  is  a  man  of  large 
means  and  has  laid  aside  enough  to  keep  the  wolf  from  his  own 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  27 

door  while  he  is  battling  for  the  rights  of  others.  His  success  as 
a  business  man  will  protect  him  from  the  contempt  which  the  well- 
to-do  usually  visit  upon  the  reformer. 

Long  life  to  him,  and  may  he  find  in  his  labor  for  his  fellows  a 
higher  and  more  enduring  enjoyment  than  is  within  the  reach  of 
those  who  strive  only  for  themselves,  or  who  make  the  accumula- 
tion of  wealth  their  sole  object. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN. 

Had  Abraham  Lincoln  lived  until  February  12,  1901,  he  would 
have  reached  the  age  of  ninety-two  years;  that  is  not  an  impossi- 
ble age  for  a  sturdy  man.  When  we  remember  that  the  years  have 
not  multiplied  to  the  extent  that,  under  ordinary  circumstances, 
Lincoln  would  be  precluded  from  being  a  living  witness  to  this 
country's  attitude  to-day,  we  are  reminded  that  it  is  an  easier  thing 
to  forget  a  good  man's  teachings  than  to  lose  recollection  of  the 
man  himself. 

The  anniversary  of  Lincoln's  birth  will  be  generally  celebrated 
throughout  the  country.  Eepublican  orators  will  claim  him  as  the 
patron  saint  of  their  party;  but  the  claim  must  seem  a  mockery 
when  we  realize  the  fact  that  that  party  had  ignored  Lincoln's 
warnings  and  violated  Lincoln's  precepts. 

Society  is  not  benefitted  by  observing  the  birthday  of  a  bad  man ; 
nor  is  society  benefitted  by  the  observance  of  a  good  man's  birth- 
day if  the  lessons  he  taught  are  banished  from  the  minds  of  the 
observers. 

If  we  would  not  appear  as  hypocrites,  we  must  in  our  observ- 
ance of  Lincoln  day  associate  Lincoln's  principles  with  the  man 
\vhose  memory  we  pretend  to  revere.  Lincoln's  fame  is  imperish- 
able because  of  his  contribution  to  society.  A  crisis  confronted  his 
country,  and  in  the  solution  of  the  problems,  he  applied  rules 
which,  if  correctly  applied  in  Lincoln's  time,  may  be  correctly  ap- 
plied to  similar  problems  in  any  period  of  human  history. 

On  one  occasion  in  replying  to  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  Mr.  Lin- 
coln said: 

We  cannot  say  people  have  a  right  to  do  wrong.  That  is  the 
real  issue.  That  is  the  issue  that  will  continue  in  this  country 
when  the  poor  tongues  of  Judge  Douglas  and  myself  shall  be  silent. 


28  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

It  is  the  eternal  struggle  between  these  two  principles — right  and 
wrong — throughout  the  world.  They  are  the  two  principles  that 
have  stood  the  test  since  the  beginning  of  time,  and  they  will  ever 
continue  to  struggle.  The  one  is  the  common  right  of  humanity, 
and  the  other  the  divine  right  of  kings.  It  is  the  same  principle 
in  whatever  shape  it  develops  itself. 

Lincoln  recognized  that  the  great  struggles  of  society  are  over 
fundamental  principles — principles  which  remain  unchanged  from 
generation  to  generation,  from  century  to  century,  although  the 
application  of  the  principles  varies  from  time  to  time  as  new  ques- 
tions arise. 

To-day  Lincoln's  memory  is  glorified,  and  yet  it  is  significant 
that  the  party  that  claims  him  as  its  own,  is  now  antagonizing 
every  vital  principle  taught  by  the  martyred  president. 

That  government  "should  express  the  highest  spirit  of  justice 
and  liberty/'  was  Mr.  Lincoln's  idea;  government  for  the  advan- 
tage of  the  few  at  the  expense  of  the  many,  is  the  republican 
notion  of  to-day. 

Lincoln  believed  that  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  writ- 
ten for  all  men  and  for  all  time,  and  provided  the  only  safe  rule 
for  human  government.  To-day  the  republican  politician  has  noth- 
ing but  sneers  when  the  Declaration  is  invoked  as  a  safe  guide  for 
the  solution  of  present  day  problems. 

Lincoln  believed  that  a  people  should  never  "entrust  to  hands 
other  than  their  own,  the  preservation  and  perpetuity  of  their  own 
liberties  and  institutions."  The  republican  notion  of  to-day  is, 
that  one  set  of  men  has  the  right  to  give  to  another  set  of  men  only 
that  degree  of  self-government  which  in  the  estimation  of  the 
former  the  latter  is  capable  of  enjoying. 

Lincoln  had  faith  that  right  makes  might.  The  republican  no- 
tion of  to-day  is,  that  might  makes  right. 

What  a  vast  difference  between  the  preaching  of  Lincoln  and  the 
practice  of  the  party  that  claims  Lincoln  as  its  patron  saint. 

At  this  time,  when  the  republican  party  is  engaged  in  policies 
involving  the  doctrine  that  this  nation  may  trample  with  impunity 
upon  the  rights  of  men,  and  that  our  reliance  is  in  becoming  a 
world  power,  it  is  interesting  to  recall  Lincoln's  reference  to  "the 
sure  logic  of  history."  It  was  in  1858  that  Mr.  Lincoln  said : 

Our  reliance  is  in  the  love  of  liberty  which  God  has  planted  ^  in 
our  bosoms.  Our  defense  is  in  the  preservation  of  the  spirit  which 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  29 

prizes  liberty  as  the  heritage  of  all  men,  in  all  lands  everywhere. 
Destroy  this  spirit  and  you  have  planted  the  seeds  of  despotism 
around  your  doors.  Familiarize  yourselves  with  the  chains  of 
bondage  and  you  are  preparing  your  own  limbs  to  wear  them. 
Accustomed  to  trample  on  the  rights  of  those  around  you,  you 
have  lost  the  genius  of  your  own  independence  and  become  the 
fit  subjects  of  the  first  cunning  tyrant  who  rises  among  you.  And, 
let  me  tell  you,  all  these  things  are  prepared  for  you,  with  the  sure 
logic  of  history. 

There  is  not  a  lesson  taught  by  Lincoln,  there  is  not  a  prin- 
ciple defended  by  Lincoln,  there  is  not  a  rule  of  government  pro- 
claimed by  Lincoln  to  be  the  truth  that  the  republican  party  is 
not  now  arrayed  against. 

Every  policy  of  the  administration  violates  in  practice  the  les- 
sons which  Lincoln  taught ;  and  as  the  wealth  of  trusts  and  syndi- 
cates increases,  as  the  power  of  mercenary  politicians  becomes 
greater,  pretense  is  more  and  more  being  cast  aside.  Some  of  the 
foremost  leaders  of  the  republican  party  do  not  now  hesitate  to 
drop  the  mask  entirely  and  boldly  antagonize  the  truths  that  Lin- 
coln proclaimed. 


CHINESE  ATEOCITIES. 

Mr.  George  Lynch,  an  Englishman  who  has  been  doing  news- 
paper work  in  China,  gives  a  very  uncomplimentary  report  of  the 
action  of  the  powers  in  the  Orient.  He  says  that  a  wave  of  fear 
and  horror  preceded  the  advent  of  the  allies  to  such  an  extent  that 
in  many  of  the  villages  people  committed  suicide  to  save  themselves 
from  their  Christian  conquerors.  He  adds  that  some  of  the  sol- 
diers were  so  busy  looting  that  they  did  not  attempt  to  bury  the 
bodies  until  finally  the  fear  of  disease  compelled  them.  Other  re- 
ports from  apparently  trustworthy  sources  seem  to  leave  no  doubt 
that  the  foreign  troops  have  felt  relieved  from  observing  the  usages 
of  war  which  prevail  among  civilized  combatants.  This  is  not 
mentioned  for  the  purpose  of  captious  criticism,  but  only  as  an  il- 
lustration of  the  fact  that  in  a  war  between  different  races,  the 
superior  race  as  a  rule  sinks  to  the  level  of  the  inferior.  The  re- 
sult is,  that  for  generations  to  come  the  power  of  the  superior  race 
to  benefit  the  inferior  race  by  moral  influence  and  example  is  en- 
tirely destroyed.  The  Boxers  who  used  the  open  threats  of  dis- 


30  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

membennent  to  arouse  prejudice  against  foreigners  will  find  new 
facts  upon  which  to  base  their  hatred.  The  foreign  merchant  and 
the  missionary  must  live  and  labor  under  great  disadvantages  for 
years  hence. 


GAMBLING. 

The  Philadelphia  papers  are  discussing  with  astonishment  and 
indignation  the  gambling  which  has  recently  been  discovered  among 
the  school  children.  The  evidence  shows  that  a  large  majority  of 
the  schools  habitually  buy  chances  at  what  is  known  as  "policy," 
the  amount  invested  sometimes  being  as  low  as  two  cents.  A 
teacher  of  one  of  the  schools  has  been  largely  instrumental  in  se- 
curing an  investigation  and  the  North  American  charges  some  of 
the  police  officers  with  protecting  the  gambling  places  and  ignor- 
ing the  complaints  made.  About  the  same  time  word  comes  from 
Chicago  that  President  Harper,  of  the  Chicago  University,  made 
a  raid  upon  some  students  who  were  engaged  in  gaming. 

While  gambling  is  probably  less  common  here  than  in  other 
countries,  it  is  still  entirely  too  common.  It  is  not  long  since  a 
great  lottery  establishment  required  suppression,  and  even  now  a 
great  many  lottery  tickets  are  sold  in  the  United  States,  while  slot 
machines,  cigar-counter  wheels  and  similar  devices  give  constant 
testimony  to  the  fact  that  the  mania  for  games  of  chance  has  not 
been  entirely  cured.  It  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  anything  more 
demoralizing  than  the  gambling  habit  when  it  once  becomes  fixed. 
In  condemning  it  one  need  not  consider  so  much  those  who  are 
driven  to  despair  by  losses  as  those  who  are  encouraged  by  occa- 
sional success.  Cases  are  not  infrequent  where  gambling  has  led 
to  the  use  of  trust  money  and  to  the  sacrifice  of  a  life's  accumula- 
tion, but  more  pernicious  still,  if  possible,  is  the  adoption  of  the 
doctrine  that  one  should  try  to  get  something  for  nothing. 

The  only  sound  economic  theory  upon  which  society  can  be  built 
is  that  each  person  shall  make  to  society  a  contribution  equal  in 
value  to  the  benefits  which  he  receives ;  that  is  the  basis  of  the  com- 
pact between  the  individual  and  society.  The  same  principle  ap- 
plies in  all  exchange ;  each  party  to  an  honest  transaction  furnishes 
an  equivalent  for  that  which  he  receives.  People  will  not  willingly 
make  exchanges  unless  they  think  they  are  receiving  equal  value, 
and  if  one  party  deceives  the  other  he  is  guilty  of  fraud. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  31 

Gambling  destroys  this  economic  principle  and  substitutes  a  sys- 
tem wherein  to  secure  the  possibility  of  large  gain  one  accepts  the 
probability  of  a  small  loss.  It  is  difficult,  however,  to  make  much 
headway  against  small  gambling  by  children  while  it  is  considered 
respectable  for  grown  people  to  gamble  on  a  large  scale. 

The  same  paper  which  describes  the  investigation  of  policy  deal- 
ing in  Philadelphia  reported  a  "cotton  corner"  in  New  York.  So 
long  as  society  bows  before  the  successful  market  speculator,  who 
wins  his  game  with  loaded  dice,  it  is  going  to  be  hard  to  impress 
college  students  with  the  immorality  of  poker  or  to  teach  kinder- 
garten school  children  the  wickedness  of  a  two-cent  investment  in 
a  policy  slip. 


AN  EXPERT  OPINION. 

What  is  the  purpose  of  a  railroad  in  giving  a  pass  ?  If  it  is  given 
by  the  freight  department  to  a  shipper  it  is  probably  given  for 
business  reasons,  but  suppose  it  is  given  to  a  legislator,  is  it  given 
for  business  reasons  also  ?  Some  say  that  it  is  a  courtesy  extended 
without  any  reason  in  particular.  In  order  that  the  readers  of 
THE  COMMONER  may  have  the  highest  expert  testimony  on  this 
subject  the  following  letter  is  reproduced : 

Your  letter  of  the  twenty-second  to  President  Eipley  requesting 
an  annual  over  the  railroad  of  this  company  has  been  referred  to 
me.  A  couple  of  years  ago,  after  you  had  been  furnished  with  an 
annual  over  this  line,  you  voted  against  a  bill  which  you  knew  this 
company  was  directly  interested  in.  Do  you  know  of  any  particular 
reason,  therefore,  why  we  should  favor  you  with  an  annual  this 
year? 

This  letter  was  written  to  a  member  of  the  Illinois  legislature 
by  the  attorney  of  the  Santa  Fe  railroad,  of  which  Mr.  E.  P.  Ripley 
is  president.  It  is  of  recent  date  and  was  read  on  the  floor  of  the 
house  of  representatives.  It  states  as  plainly  as  language  can  that 
a  railroad  gives  passes  to  legislators  as  a  matter  of  business,  ex- 
pecting to  receive  a  valuable  consideration  in  return,  and  it  shows 
further  that  the  legislator  who  refuses  to  recognize  the  pass  as  a 
bribe  must  not  expect  to  get  any  more  passes.  A  similar  case 
occurred  in  Nebraska  a  few  years  ago  when  a  pass  issued  to  a 
member  of  the  legislature  was  recalled  because  he  voted  for  a 


32  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

maximum  rate  bill  which  the  railroad  objected  to.  Unless  a 
legislator  can  produce  better  evidence  of  the  railroad's  purpose 
than  the  railroad's  own  admission,  he  cannot  accept  a  pass  with- 
out admitting  either  that  he  intends  to  repay  the  railroad  in  serv- 
ice or  that  he  secures  the  pass  under  false  pretenses. 


LET  THE  LEGISLATURES  ACT. 

The  people  are  nearly  unanimous  in  their  support  of  the  proposi- 
tion that  United  States  Senators  should  be  elected  by  a  direct  vote 
of  the  people. 

The  National  House  of  Representatives  has  three  times  adopted 
a  resolution,  practically  without  opposition,  submitting  the  neces- 
sary constitutional  amendment;  a  resolution  is  now  before  the 
Senate  and  could  be  acted  upon  in  a  few  hours.  It  is  hardly 
probable  that  any  senator  would  make  an  argument  against  the 
resolution  and  certainly  no  group  of  senators  would  filibuster  against 
it.  If  the  state  legislators  now  in  session  would  act  at  once  and 
urge  their  senators  to  call  up  the  resolution  and  insist  upon  im- 
mediate action,  the  amendment  might  be  submitted  by  this 
Congress.  It  is  worth  while  to  try. 


A  PEOSPEROUS  TRUS'i. 

The  par  value  of  a  share  of  stock  in  the  Standard  Oil  Company 
is  $100.  Since  the  republican  victory  of  1896,  the  market  value 
of  Standard  Oil  stock  has  been  steadily  increasing.  Soon  after  the 
election  of  1896  this  stock  was  quoted  at  $200  per  share.  In 
February,  1899,  it  sold  for  $439  per  share ;  in  February,  1900,  it 
sold  at  $512  per  share;  in  September  of  1900  it  dropped  back  to 
$500  per  share.  But  after  "confidence"  was  once  more  restored  by 
a  republican  victory,  this  stock  went  up  to  $600  per  share.  In 
January,  1901,  it  sold  for  $794.  On  February  4,  it  sold  at  $805, 
and  the  latest  quotation  at  hand  is  $815. 

When  one  reads  the  record  of  recent  dividends  declared  by  this 
great  concern,  it  is  not  difficult  to  understand  why  the  market 
value  of  the  stock  has  increased  so  rapidly. 

The  capital  stock  of  the  Standard  Oil  Company  is  $100,000,000. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  33 

In  1891,  1892,  1893,  1894  and  1895,  the  Standard  Oil  Com- 
pany paid  dividends  amounting  for  each  year  to  $12  on  each  share 
of  stock.  In  1896  the  dividends  amounted  to  $31  per  share;  in 
1897  they  were  $33  per  share;  in  the  month  of  January,  1900,  they 
were  $20  per  share;  in  April,  1900,  the  dividends  amounted  to 
$10  per  share ;  in  July,  $8  per  share ;  in  November,  $10  per  share ; 
and  the  company  has  now  declared  a  dividend  payable  March  15th 
of  $20  per  share. 

This  latest  dividend  means  the  payment  of  $20,000,000  upon  the 
capital  of  $100,000,000  of  capital  stock. 

The  total  dividends  paid  by  this  company  for  the  entire  year 
of  1900  amounted  to  $48,000,000. 

The  dividends  to  be  paid  on  March  15th  brings  the  aggregate 
up  to  $68,000,000  of  dividends  paid  upon  a  capital  stock  of  $100,- 
000,000  during  a  period  of  fourteen  months  and  fifteen  days. 

It  will  be  readily  understood  from  the  figures  why  Standard 
Oil  stock  is  quoted  so  high  in  the  markets. 

But  where  will  we  find  an  explanation  of  a  condition  that  within 
a  period  of  less  than  fifteen  months  a  concern  whose  working 
capital  is  $100,000,000  is  enabled  to  roll  up  profits  to  the  extent 
of  $68,000,000  ? 

This  certainly  indicates  that  the  stockholders  of  the  Standard 
Oil  Company  are  prosperous.  But  someone  must  have  paid  thi* 
$68,000,000.  .Who  paid  it? 


DELIGHTFUL  UNCEKTAINTY. 

There  seems  to  be  a  movement  toward  the  establishment  of  civil 
government  in  the  Philippines.  The  Spooner  resolution  which  re- 
ceives most  favor  in  administration  circles  is  as  follows : 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  That  when  all  insurrection  against  the 
sovereignty  and  authority  of  the  United  States  in  the  Philippine 
Islands,  acquired  from  Spain  by  the  treaty  concluded  at  Paris  on 
the  10th  day  of  December,  1898,  shall  have  been  completely  sup- 
pressed by  the  military  and  naval  forces  of  the  United  States,  all 
military,  civil,  and  judicial  powers  necessary  to  govern  the  said 
islands  shall,  until  otherwise  provided  by  congress,  be  vested  in  such 
person  and  persons  and  shall  be  exercised  in  such  manner  as  the 
president  of  the  United  States  shall  direct  for  maintaining  and 


34  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

protecting  the  inhabitants  of  said  islands  in  the  free  enjoyment 
of  their  liberty,  property  and  religion. 

This  is  an  innocent  looking  resolution,  but  only  a  few  explana- 
tory words  are  necessary  to  make  it  fully  understood.  Translated 
into  plain  English  it  would  read  as  follows : 

Kesolved/ That  when  the  war  is  over  (nobody  knows  when  that 
will  be)  the  President  shall  establish  some  kind  of  a  government 
(nobody  knows  what  kind)  and  maintain  it  (nobody  knows  how 
long)  until  Congress  does  something  (nobody  knows  what). 

It  is  more  than  two  years  since  the  treaty  was  ratified  and 
this  is  the  nearest  approach  that  the  republicans  have  made  toward 
a  definite  plan.  They  are  not  willing  to  give  the  Filipinos  their 
independence  and  they  are  not  yet  willing  to  openly  repudiate 
the  doctrine  of  self-government.  Therefore  they  find  cover  behind 
commissions  and  delegations  of  authority  which  conceal,  so  far  as 
possible,  their  imperialistic  purposes. 


A  PAETIAL  EEMEDY. 

Ex-Attorney  General  Harmon,  of  Mr.  Cleveland's  cabinet,  and 
ex-Attorney  General  Miller,  of  Mr.  Harrison's  cabinet,  have  re- 
cently suggested  the  free  list  as  a  remedy  for  trusts.  Such  sug- 
gestions, coming  from  such  high  authority  and  from  such  opposite 
sources,  are  encouraging  as  showing  a  reaction  against  the  high 
tariff  doctrine  which  has  dominated  republican  councils.  That  the 
trusts  take  advantage  of  a  tariff  wall  is  no  longer  open  to  ques- 
tion; neither  can  it  be  disputed  that  much  extortion  would  be 
prevented  by  placing  every  trust  made  article  on  the  free  list,  but 
this  must  not  be  accepted  as  a  complete  remedy.  We  find  our- 
selves exporting  every  year  a  larger  variety  of  American  manufac- 
tures, and  wherever  a  trust  can  export  it  can  live  and  flourish 
without  the  aid  of  a  protective  tariff.  While  the  free  list  remedy 
would  be  a  step  in  the  right  direction,  it  must  be  accompanied  by 
other  legislation  if  private  monopolies  are  to  be  exterminated. 
Aside  from  the  imposition  practiced  upon  the*  public  in  the  way 
of  high  prices,  the  trust  destroys  industrial  independence  and 
places  all  employes  in  that  line  of  work  at  the  mercy  of  one  em- 
ployer. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  35 

A  remedy  to  be  complete  and  satisfactory  must  prevent  the  es- 
tablishment of  a  monopoly,  for  while  extortionate  prices  are  bad, 
a  private  monopoly  was  declared  by  the  Kansas  City  platform  to 
be  both  indefensible  and  intolerable.  Let  trust  made  articles  be 
placed  on  the  free  list,  but  to  stop  there  would  be  a  disappoint- 
ment to  those  who  are  in  earnest  in  their  opposition  to  private 
monopolies. 


BY  WHAT  AUTHOKITY? 

We  are  told  that  an  extra  session  of  Congress  will  be  necessary 
in  order  that  the  Cuban  constitution  may  be  "ratified"  or  "re- 
jected." 

By  what  authority  does  the  American  Congress  presume  to  pass 
upon  the  Cuban  constitution?  Unless  the  United  States  has  sov- 
ereignty, jurisdiction  or  control  over  the  island  of  Cuba,  no  such 
authority  exists.  And  it  will  be  remembered  that  the  war  resolu- 
tions distinctly  stated  that  the  United  States  would  not  exercise 
"sovereignty,  jurisdiction  or  control  over  said  island  except  for 
the  pacification  thereof." 

With  the  adoption  of  these  resolutions  Congress  delivered  the 
Cuban  question  over  to  the  executive  who  is  charged  with  the 
disposition  of  that  question  according  to  the  terms  of  the  war 
resolutions. 

Since  the  Spaniards  were  driven  out,  all  authority  in  the  island 
of  Cuba  has  been  exercised  by  the  President,  or  by  men  deputized 
by  him.  The  people  of  that  island  were  able  to  choose  members 
of  a  constitutional  convention  at  an  orderly  election;  if  that 
constitutional  convention  adopts  a  constitution  molded  on  the  lines 
cf  republican  form  of  government,  and  an  improvement  in  some 
respects  over  our  own  Constitution,  it  certainly  must  be  admitted 
that  "pacification"  has  taken  place. 

The  Cuban  people  alone  have  the  authority  to  adopt  or  modify 
their  constitution.  When  a  government  in  compliance  with  that 
constitution  is  organized,  it  will  be  the  duty  of  the  President  to 
withdraw  the  military  forces  of  the  United  States  from  that  island, 
and  leave  its  people  to  work  out  their  own  destiny,  overcoming 
obstacles  in  their  own  way  exactly  as  other  peoples  have  been  re- 
quired to  do. 


36  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  withdrawal  of  the  United  States  from  Cuba  and  delivery 
of  power  there  to  the  constituted  authorities  of  that  island,  is 
purely  an  executive  act.  The  question  of  pacification  involves  a 
very  simple  fact.  The  executive  knows,  as  the  world  knows,  that 
Cuba  has  been  pacified.  But  if  Congress  should  assume  the  author- 
ity to  approve,  reject  or  modify  the  Cuban  constitution,  the  United 
States  would  be  assuming  sovereignty,  jurisdiction  and  control  over 
the  island  of  Cuba,  things  which  the  United  States  expressly  dis- 
claimed. 

It  is  contended  by  some  friends  of  the  administration  that  it 
is  essential  that  the  United  States  shall  be  given  suzerain  powers  in 
that  constitution — that  the  Cuban  people  shall  obligate  themselves 
not  to  enter  into  treaties  with  foreign  countries  without  the  United 
States'  consent. 

It  is  further  claimed  that  it  is  necessary,  that  the  constitution 
shall  declare  that  there  shall  be  no  interference  with  "vested  rights" 
in  the  island  of  Cuba. 

In  the  first  place,  the  claim  to  suzerain  rights  is  a  distinct 
violation  of  our  disclaimer  that  the  United  States  would  not  seek 
to  exercise  sovereignty,  jurisdiction  or  control  over  said  island, 
except  for  the  pacification  thereof.  It  is  a  distinct  violation  of 
our  pledge  that  after  pacification  is  accomplished  it  is  our  intention 
to  leave  the  government  of  that  island  to  the  Cuban  people. 

In  the  next  place  there  are  no  such  things  morally  or  legally  as 
"vested  rights"  in  the  island  of  Cuba  accruing  during  our  military 
occupation  of  that  island. 

It  is  true  that  since  our  military  forces  took  possession  there, 
syndicates  having  the  favor  of  the  administration  have  rushed  in 
and  have  obtained  valuable  franchises,  but  these  franchises  are 
the  property  of  the  people  of  Cuba.  Our  military  forces  were  there 
for  the  purpose  of  aiding  in  pacification,  and  were  not  given  author- 
ity to  vest  any  rights  in  administration  favored  syndicates. 

The  anxiety  of  these  syndicates  to  maintain  possession  of  valuable 
franchises  is  perhaps  the  explanation  of  the  disposition  manifested 
by  the  administration  politicians  to  violate  the  solemn  pledge  of 
this  nation  with  respect  to  the  island  of  Cuba. 

It  may  be  that  Congress  will  insist  upon  passing  upon  the 
Cuban  constitution,  but  this  will  be  mere  assumption.  It  may  be 
that  Congress  will  seek  to  modify  that  constitution  according 
to  the  whims  of  administration  politicians  and  for  the  benefit 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  37 

of  administration  syndicates,  but  Congress  will  be  treading  on 
dangerous  ground.  In  law  and  in  morals  it  will  be  acting  with- 
out authority.  In  fact,  it  will  be  trifling  with  a  people  whose 
history  repudiates  the  presumption  that  they  will  submit  to  im- 
position at  the  hands  of  American  syndicates  and  American  politi- 
cians any  more  willingly  than  they  would  submit  to  imposition  at 
the  hands  of  Spanish  tyrants. 

The  President  has  been  very  quick  to  encroach  upon  congres- 
sional prerogative  in  the  selection  of  a  Philippine  Commission  em- 
powered by  him  with  authority  to  make  laws  and  to  collect  and 
disburse  revenues  in  the  Philippine  Islands.  He  now  seems  to 
be  equally  ready  to  surrender  a  plain  and  exclusive  executive  pre- 
rogative in  carrying  out  the  war  resolutions  with  respect  to  Cuba. 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  THE  PRESS. 

LINCOLN,  NEB.,  Feb.  8th,  1901. 
Mr.  G.  P.  Brown,  President  Correspondent's  Club,  New  York. 

DEAR  SIR: — I  am  in  receipt  of  your  favor  announcing  that  the 
annual  reunion  of  your  club  is  to  be  held  on  the  fourteenth  of 
February,  and  asking  for  some  suggestions  upon  the  theme,  "How 
can  the  influence  of  the  Press  be  increased  ?" 

I  thank  you  for  the  honor  you  do  me,  and  take  pleasure  in  sub- 
mitting an  opinion.  Taking  it  for  granted  that  the  members  of 
your  club  will  deal  exhaustively  with  the  news  features  of  the 
press,  I  shall  confine  my  observations  to  the  editorial  department. 

The  influence  of  the  press  must,  in  the  long  run,  depend  upon 
the  character  of  the  press  and,  as  the  character  of  the  press  is  de- 
termined by  the  character  established  by  individual  newspapers,  it 
follows  that  improvement  must  begin  with  the  units  which  make  up 
the  whole. 

Improvements  are  always  possible,  but  three  occur  to  me  as  of 
especial  and  immediate  importance. 

First.  A  newspaper  will  exert  a  greater  influence,  other  things 
being  equal,  if  it  is  known  to  represent  on  public  questions  the 
deliberate  convictions  of  some  person — a  person  of  flesh  and  blood, 
not  a  corporation.  The  New  York  Tribune,  under  Greeley,  was  a 
good  illustration  of  such  a  paper. 

Second.     The  influence  of  a  newspaper,  other  things  being  equal, 


38  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

will  be  greater  if  it  is  known  who  owns  the  paper  and  controls 
its  policy,  and  that  that  person  has  no  interests  adverse  to  the 
interests  of  the  readers.  So  many  newspapers  are  owned  by,  or 
mortgaged  to,  speculators,  capitalists  and  monopolists,  and  are  used 
for  advocating  or  excusing  legislation,  having  for  its  object  the 
conferring  of  special  privileges  upon  a  few  of  the  people  at  the 
expense  of  the  rest  of  the  people,  that  the  Press  has  been  robbed 
of  much  of  its  legitimate  influence. 

Third.  The  influence  of  the  Press  will  be  increased  by  greater 
unity  in  the  support  of  any  good  cause  and  in  the  condemnation 
of  any  bad  practice.  The  character  of  a  paper  is  affected  less  by 
griority  in  the  discovery  of  a  felony  than  by  persistence  in  the 
prosecution  of  the  felon.  In  other  words,  a  principle  is  more 
important  than  a  "scoop."  Very  truly  yours, 

W.  J.  BRYAN. 


THE  COST  OF  MILITARISM. 

"Peace  is  the  imperious  necessity  of  advanced  democratic  civili- 
zation," says  the  New  York  World,  "and  only  the  despotically 
governed  nations  can  afford  to  maintain  huge  military  establish- 
ments." 

The  World  points  out  that  free  countries  whose  fighting  forces 
must  be  raised  by  voluntary  enlistment  instead  of  by  universal 
conscription  must  pay  for  them  in  open  competition  with  the  labor 
market.  Pointing  out  that  we  pay,  for  an  army  and  navy  of 
120,000  men,  $253,696,870,  exclusive  of  pensions,  The  World  says 
that  this  is  $14,000,000  a  year  more  than  England  pays,  including 
pensions,  for  an  army  and  navy  that  number  364,000  men. 

Including  pensions,  our  military  budget  aggregates  $398,  942,- 
103,  which  The  World  says  is  more  than  twice  as  large  as  the 
military  budget  of  France,  with  her  army  and  navy  of  622,000 
men ;  almost  twice  as  large  as  Russia  with  nearly  a  million  soldiers 
and  sailors;  nearly  double  Germany's  with  her  half  million  en- 
listed men  and  almost  five  times  as  large  as  Austria's  with  278,- 
000  men. 

Aside  from  pensions,  the  cost  of  the  American  army  and  navy, 
according  to  The  World,  averages  $2,100  per  year  for  our  enlisted 
men.  To  Great  Britain  the  cost  is  something  less  than  $700  a  year 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  39 

for  every  man.     The  cheapest  of  all  is  the  Russian  soldier  and 
sailor  who  costs  $200  per  year. 

The  World's  contention  that  only  the  despotically  governed  na- 
tions can  afford  to  maintain  huge  military  establishments  was 
not  particularly  in  need  of  confirmation,  but  if  confirmation  was 
required,  accepting  these  figures  as  correct,  the  point  has  been  fully 
sustained. 


SENATORIAL  WIT. 

Mr.  Towne's  speech  on  the  Philippine  question  brought  out 
a  passage  at  arms  between  him  and  Senator  Depew,  which  has 
been  widely  circulated. 

The  New  York  Senator  said:  "I  congratulate  you,  Mr.  Towne. 
Your  delivery  was  fine,  your  diction  elegant  and  your  peroration 
superb,  but  your  argument  was  damnable."  "I  am  delighted  to 
know,"  instantly  replied  the  Senator  from  Minnesota,  "that  you 
approve  of  the  only  features  of  it  you  could  comprehend." 

This  recalls  an  exchange  of  compliments  which  is  reported  to 
have  occurred  between  Senator  Beck,  of  Kentucky,  and  Senator 
Hoar,  of  Massachusetts. 

The  former  likened  the  Senator  from  Massachusetts  to  a  tract 
of  land  in  Virginia  described  by  Randolph  as  "barren  by  nature 
and  impoverished  by  cultivation."  The  gentleman  from  the  Bay 
State  awaited  his  opportunity,  and  when  a  fellow  senator,  com- 
menting on  Mr.  Beck's  continuous  speaking  in  the  discussion  of  a 
tariff  bill,  asked :  "When  does  his  mind  rest  ?"  replied,  "When  he 
talks."  Evidently  the  Senate  is  not  always  prosy. 


"WARNINGS  OF  A  PARTING  FRIEND." 

"The  disinterested  warnings  of  a  parting  friend,"  is  the  way 
George  Washington  referred  to  the  admonitions  contained  in  his 
farewell  address.  The  observance  of  the  birthday  of  that  great 
American  will  be  of  no  value  to  this  generation  unless  the  American 
people  shall  turn  seriously  and  intelligently  to  an  inspection  of 
the  things  which  made  this  man  great,  and  a  careful  study  of 
the  warnings  which  his  love  for  his  country  prompted  him  to 
place  before  the  American  people. 


4O  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Washington's  birthday  is  a  national  holiday,  and  it  will  be  very 
generally  celebrated  throughout  the  country.  And  yet  at  this  time 
the  men  in  charge  of  our  national  affairs  are  violating  every  ad- 
monition contained  in  the  farewell  address  of  the  soldier  and  states- 
man whose  memory  all  should  revere. 

It  was  Washington's  solicitude  for  his  country's  welfare,  which 
he  declared  could  not  end  but  with  his  life,  that  prompted  him 
to  give  detailed  warnings  against  the  dangers  which  his  experience 
and  foresight  anticipated  for  this  nation. 

Washington  wrote  of  the  love  of  liberty  as  being  "interwoven 
with  every  ligament  of  your  hearts,"  and,  he  added,  that  no  recom- 
mendation of  his  was  necessary  "to  fortify  or  confirm  the  attach- 
ment." If  Washington  lived  to-day,  would  he  not  be  justified  in 
suspecting  that  this  attachment  was  in  need  of  at  least  some  "forti- 
fication" ? 

Washington  urged  that  "the  free  constitution  which  is  the  work 
of  your  hands  may  be  sacredly  maintained."  Can  it  be  said  that 
this  hope  has  been  fulfilled  when  to-day  the  executive  branch  of 
the  government  violates  with  impunity  the  letter  and  the  spirit  of 
the  Constitution? 

Washington  expressed  the  hope  that  the  happiness  of  the  Ameri- 
can people  "under  the  auspices  of  liberty"  might  be  so  complete 
that  the  people  might  acquire  the  glory  of  recommending  liberty 
"to  the  applause,  the  affection  and  adoption  of  every  nation  which 
is  yet  a  stranger  to  it."  Can  it  be  said  that  this  hope  approaches 
fulfillment  at  a  time  when  we  have  turned  our  backs  upon  two 
republics  in  South  Africa,  whose  people  are  fighting  for  freedom, 
and  when  we  are  sending  armed  forces  to  the  Philippine  Islands  to 
subjugate  a  people  who  aspire  to  liberty  ? 

Washington  urged  us  to  avoid  the  necessity  of  "those  overgrown 
military  establishments,  which,  under  any  form  of  government  are 
inauspicious  to  liberty,  and  which  are  to  be  regarded  as  particularly 
hostile  to  republican  liberty."  And  yet  to-day  our  national  au- 
thorities have  just  completed  an  "overgrown  military  establish- 
ment," and  the  army  and  navy  appropriation,  exclusive  of  pensions, 
made  at  the  present  session  of  congress  amounts  to  $253,696,870. 

Washington  declared  that  "the  constitution,  which  at  any  time 
exists  till  changed  by  an  explicit  and  authentic  act  of  the  whole 
people,  is  sacredly  obligatory  upon  all."  How  widely  did  Wash- 
ington's views  differ  from  those  of  the  republican  leaders  of  to- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  41 

day?  A  republican  congress  violates  the  constitutional  require- 
ment that  tariff  duties  shall  be  uniform,  and  ignores  the  constitu- 
tional prohibition  against  a  tax  on  exports.  A  republican  presi- 
dent in  the  absence  of  congressional  authority  declares  war,  signs 
an  agreement  whereby  purchase  is  the  method  for  emancipation  on 
United  States  territory,  transfers  to  a  commission  of  individuals 
appointed  by  himself  the  power  to  make  laws,  to  collect  and  dis- 
burse the  revenues,  and  to  exercise  all  powers  of  sovereignty  in  a 
territory  which  our  national  authorities  claim  to  be  subject  to 
United  States  jurisdiction. 

Washington  warned  us  to  "resist  with  care  the  spirit  of  innova- 
tion" upon  the  principles  of  our  government,  "however  specious  the 
pretexts."  Have  we  manifested  the  anxiety  on  this  point  which 
Washington  would  have  had  us  cultivate  ? 

Washington  warned  us  against  a  disposition  toward  factional- 
ism, pointing  out  that  "sooner  or  later  the  chief  of  some  prevailing 
faction  more  able  or  more  fortunate  than  his  competitors  would 
turn  this  disposition  to  the  purposes  of  his  own  elevation  on  the 
ruins  of  public  liberty."  It  is  not  difficult  to  see  how  this  admo- 
nition has  been  ignored  at  a  time  when  congress  and  president 
have  abdicated  their  privilege  of  originating  and  enacting  whole- 
some measures,  have  surrendered  their  duty  of  disposing  of  public 
questions  in  the  light  of  public  interests  all  in  favor  of  one  individ- 
ual, whose  public  importance  is  due  to  the  skill  he  has  displayed 
as  a  politician. 

No  more  striking  warning  was  given  by  Washington  than  when 
he  said: 

It  is  important  that  the  habits  of  thinking  in  a  free  country 
should  inspire  caution  in  those  entrusted  with  its  administration, 
to  confine  themselves  within  their  respective  constitutional  spheres, 
avoiding  in  the  exercise  of  the  powers  of  one  department  any  en- 
croachment upon  another. 

The  spirit  of  encroachment  tends  to  consolidate  the  powers  of  all 
the  departments  in  one,  and  thus  to  create,  whatever  the  form  of 
government,  a  real  despotism.  A  just  estimate  of  that  love  of 
power  and  proneness  to  abuse  it,  which  predominates  in  the  human 
heart,  is  sufficient  to  satisfy  us  of  the  truth  of  this  position.  The 
necessity  of  reciprocal  checks  in  the  exercise  of  political  power  by 
dividing  and  distributing  it  into  different  depositories,  and  con- 
stituting each  the  guardian  of  the  public  weal  against  innovations 
by  the  others  has  been  evinced  by  experiments,  ancient  and  mod- 


42  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

era,  some  of  them  in  our  own  country  and  under  our  own  eyes. 
To  preserve  them  must  be  as  necessary  as  to  institute  them. 

Of  all  Washington's  warnings  none  are  more  pertinent  to  the 
present  day  than  this.  In  every  instance  where  one  department 
has  encroached  upon  the  other,  it  has  been  on  the  pretense  of  public 
good,  and  on  this  point  Washington  gave  to  us  an  explicit  admoni- 
tion. "Though  this  in  one  instance,"  said  Washington,  "may  be 
the  instrument  of  good,  it  is  the  customary  weapon  by  which  free 
governments  are  destroyed.  The  precedent  must  always  greatly 
overbalance  in  permanent  evil  any  partial  or  transient  benefit  which 
the  use  can  at  any  time  yield." 

Washington  held  that  virtue  or  morality  was  "a  necessary  spring 
of  popular  government,"  and  he  added  that  no  sincere  friend  to 
free  government  "can  look  with  indifference  upon  attempts  to  shake 
the  foundation  of  the  fabric."  What  has  become  of  this  "necessary 
spring"  when  ship-subsidy  grabbers,  trust  magnates,  and  other 
representatives  of  a  privileged  class  are  accorded  high  seats  in 
the  national  councils,  and  make  and  unmake  laws  according  to 
their  own  whims  and  to  the  advantage  of  their  own  interests? 
What  has  become  of  the  "necessary  spring"  when  we  are  appro- 
priating millions  of  dollars  in  order  to  carry  on  a  war  of  conquest, 
in  order  to  subjugate  a  people  who  are  fighting  for  principles  de- 
clared by  Washington  and  the  men  of  his  time  to  be  true  principles, 
and  in  their  truth  eternal  as  the  stars  ? 

Washington  admonishes  us  to  economy  in  all  public  affairs,  and 
at  this  moment  there  is  drawing  to  a  close  a  congressional  session 
that  is  appropriating,  or  will  appropriate  befere  its  conclusion,  very 
nearly  a  billion  dollars. 

Washington  admonishes  us  against  inveterate  antipathies  toward 
any  nation,  and  at  the  same  time  took  occasion  to  remind  us  that 
"affectionate  attachment  for  any  nation  should  also  be  excluded." 
And  yet  to-day  our  national  authorities  are  cultivating  a  devotion 
toward  Great  Britain  so  ardent  that  it  precludes  us  from  building 
a  canal  on  American  soil  without  British  consent;  that  prevented 
us  from  protesting  against  the  American  flag  being  hauled  down 
on  territory  which  for  thirty-two,  years  had  been  United  States 
property,  and  that  denied  us  the  traditional  privilege  of  expressing 
sympathy  with  two  republics  struggling  for  existence  and  doing 
battle  against  the  encroachments  of  an  empire. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  43 

Washington  warned  us  against  foreign  influence,  and  so  earnest 
was  he  on  this  point  that  he  pleaded:  "I  conjure  you  to  believe 
me,  my  fellow  citizens."  Pointing  out  the  wide  difference  between 
the  interests  of  a  government  by  free  men  and  a  government  by 
monarchs,  Washington  said :  "Against  the  insidious  wiles  of  foreign 
influence  (I  conjure  you  to  believe  me,  my  fellow  citizens)  the 
jealousy  of  a  free  people  ought  to  be  constantly  awake,  since  history 
and  experience  prove  that  foreign  influence  is  one  of  the  most 
baneful  foes  of  republican  government."  Americans  of  to-day  are 
in  a  position  to  realize  the  value  of  this  admonition ;  and  Americans 
of  to-day  are  in  a  position  to  know  that  Washington  prophesied  well 
when  in  warning  us  against  "excessive  partiality  for  one  foreign 
nation"  he  said:  "real  patriots  who  may  resist  the  intrigues  of 
the  favorite  are  liable  to  become  suspected  and  odious,  while  its 
tools,  and  dupes  usurp  the  applause  and  confidence  of  the  people 
to  surrender  their  interests."  In  the  opinion  of  some  of  the  men 
to-day,  the  John  Hays,  whose  favorite  pastime  is  exchanging  com- 
pliments with  British  ambassadors,  are  statesmen  and  patriots  of 
the  highest  character ;  while  men  who  protest  against  the  "insidious 
wiles"  of  British  influence  are  enemies  to  national  progress  and 
dangerous  foes  to  national  order. 

These  admonitions  were,  in  the  language  of  Washington,  "the 
counsels  of  an  old  and  affectionate  friend."  He  said  he  dared  not 
hope  they  would  make  the  strong  and  lasting  impression  he  could 
wish;  but  they  did  make  a  strong  impression,  and,  written  in  1796, 
they  were  lasting  for  a  period  of  100  years.  Until  the  days  of  the 
present  administration  they  provided  the  rules  for  our  national 
conduct.  That  these  principles  are  yet  strong  in  the  American 
heart  cannot  be  doubted.  Washington  himself  said  that  if  these 
suggestions  might  "now  and  then  recur"  to  warn  "against  the  mis- 
chiefs of  foreign  intrigue,  to  guard  against  the  impostures  of  pre- 
tended patriotism,  this  hope  will  be  a  full  recompense  for  the  solici- 
tude for  your  welfare  by  which  they  have  been  dictated." 

If  it  was  ever  important  that  interest  be  revived  in  a  great  state 
paper,  it  is  important  at  this  time  that  interest  be  revived  in  Wash- 
ington's farewell  address. 


44  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


II. 

BUT  WHAT  IS  THE  EEMEDY? 

The  Chicago  Chronicle  says  that  to  a  larger  extent  than  ever 
before  the  wealth  of  the  country  is  enlisted  on  the  side  of  the 
republican  party  and  it  charges  that  this  is  due,  in  part,  to  the 
fact  that  the  republican  party  favors  manufacturing  and  other 
enterprises,  and,  in  part,  "to  some  recent  deliverances  by  demo- 
crats which  have  been  construed  as  hostile  to  public  and  private 
credit." 

The  latter  suggestion,  taken  in  connection  with  previous  utter- 
ances of  the  paper,  justifies  the  inference  that  it  refers  to  the 
speeches  made  in  defense  of  the  Chicago  and  Kansas  City  plat- 
forms. The  Chronicle  itself  has  been  inclined  to  construe  such 
speeches  into  an  attack  upon  wealth,  whereas  a  distinction  has 
always  been  made  between  honest  accumulations  and  money  made 
by  illegal  means.  It  is  chief  among  the  western  advocates  of 
reorganization  and  is  persistently  using  its  great  influence  to 
make  the  democratic  party  more  like  the  republican  party  with 
a  view  to  winning  back  those  former  democrats  who  have  been 
supporting  the  republican  tickets  during  recent  years.  The  charges 
which  the  Chronicle  has  so  often  brought  against  the  Chicago  plat- 
form, the  Kansas. City  platform  and  the  men  who  defend  those 
platforms  are  wholly  without  foundation.  There  is  not  a  plank 
in  either  of  those  platforms  which  can  fairly  be  construed  as  an 
attack  upon  property  or  upon  those  who  accumulated  money  by 
legitimate  methods,  neither  can  the  speeches  made  in  support  of 
those  platforms  be  so  construed. 

The  democratic  party  and  those  who  believe  in  its  policies  are 
really  the  conservative  element  of  the  country.  They  are  trying 
to  protect  life  and  property  and  to  advance  the  public  welfare  by 
the  application  of  old,  tried  and  well  settled  principles ;  they  would 
relieve  that  wealth  which  is  the  reward  of  industry  from  the 
odium  cast  upon  it  by  wealth  which  is  the  result  of  exploitation 
or  governmental  favoritism. 

There  is  no  tenable  middle  ground  between  the  position  occupied 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  45 

by  the  republican  party  and  the  position  occupied  by  the  demo- 
cratic party.  Eepublican  policies  are  all  of  a  kind ;  they  all  violate 
the  doctrine  of  equal  rights  to  all  and  special  privileges  to  none. 

It  is  not  a  mere  coincidence  that  the  party  which  in  1896  was 
willing  to  turn  over  the  finances  of  the  nation  to  the  financiers, 
was  also  the  party  which,  in  1900,  furnished  nearly  all  the  advo- 
cates of  imperialism,  a  large  army,  trusts,  subsidies,  etc.  Is  it 
merely  a  coincidence  that  the  Chronicle.,  which  in  1896  aided  in 
the  election  of  a  republican  president,  celebrated  Mr.  McKinley's 
second  election  by  repudiating  the  position  taken  by  the  demo- 
cratic party  on  the  Philippine  question  and  the  financial  question 
and  by  adopting  republican  phraseology  in  protesting  against  the 
use  of  harsh  words  in  condemning  industrial  combinations? 

The  democratic  party  cannot  accept  the  republican  position  on 
one  question  and  then  make  a  successful  fight  against  the  republi- 
can position  on  other  questions.  In  other  words,  the  democratic 
party  must  be  consistent  and  apply  democratic  principles  at  all 
times  and  everywhere.  It  must  be  the  exponent  of  popular  rights 
and  the  friend  of  the  producing  classes,  or  it  will  become  the  tool 
of  predatory  wealth. 

After  discussing  the  purpose  of  the  republican  party  to  run  the 
government  for  the  benefit  of  the  few  and  after  warning  the  re- 
publican leaders  that  there  is  a  limit  to  public  endurance  the 
Chronicle  makes  this  significant  prediction : 

The  democratic  party  is  opposed  to  class  privilege  as  exemplified 
in  protective  tariffs  and  subsidies.  It  has  made  an  unsuccessful 
effort  to  eliminate  the  evil  from  our  government  politics.  Its 
failure  in  this  respect  under  Mr.  Cleveland  is  what  gave  rise  to 
the  more  radical  movement  under  Mr.  Bryan.  If  the  great  con- 
servative class  of  the  republic,  the  men  who  stand  between  the 
very  rich  and  the  very  poor,  and  who  have  twice  saved  the  re- 
publican party  from  deserved  defeat,  shall  at  length  revolt  at  the 
practices  which  have  made  republican  triumph  synonymous  with 
robbery  and  jobbery,  we  may  be  sure  that  in  their  wrath  they  will 
call  for  some  remedy  more  radical  than  any  that  has  been  proposed 
by  the  democratic  party  of  Cleveland  or  the  democratic  party  of 
Bryan. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  tariffs  and  subsidies  are  the  special 
privileges  emphasized.  What  about  the  other  evils  that  demand 
attention  ? 


46  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

In  prophesying  that  radical  measures  will  be  resorted  to  if  con- 
servative ones  fail,  the  Chronicle  is  simply  judging  the  future  by 
the  past ;  but  what  remedy  does  it  propose  ?  The  democratic  party 
must  be  prepared  to  meet  every  emergency,  to  combat  every  wrong, 
and  to  apply  a  remedy  to  every  disease  which  afflicts  the  body 
politic. 

The  democratic  party  declares  that  the  Filipinos  should  be  given 
their  independence  and  then  protected  from  outside  interference 
as  the  republics  of  Central  and  South  America  have  been  protected. 
What  other  remedy  is  there  for  imperialism  and  militarism  ?  The 
democratic  party  has  declared  war  on  every  form  of  private  monop- 
oly. What  other  honest  course  can  it  pursue  ? 

The  democratic  party  is  in  favor  of  the  greenback  as  against 
the  bank  note.  How  can  those  democrats  who  favor  a  national 
bank  currency,  issued  by  private  corporations  for  private  benefit, 
oppose  other  special  privileges  of  the  same  kind?  And  what  are 
such  democrats  doing  to  prevent  the  conversion  of  five  hundred 
millions  of  legal  tender  silver  dollars  into  subsidiary  coin  or  to 
protect  the  jury  system  from  the  assault  that  is  being  made  upon 
it  by  government  by  injunction  ? 

There  is  some  encouragement  in  the  fact  that  a  paper  like  the 
Chronicle  admits  the  dangerous  tendencies  of  republican  policies, 
even  though  it  has  no  plan  for  meeting  those  dangers.  Having 
discovered  the  disease  it  may  now  seek  a  remedy,  and  when  it 
does  set  out  in  earnest  to  find  a  remedy,  it  will  find  it  in  con- 
verting republicans  to  democratic  principles  as  set  forth  in  the 
party's  latest  platforms,  rather  than  in  the  conversion  of  the  demo- 
cratic party  to  republican  ideas. 


THE  ROOT  OF  ALL  EVIL. 

Rer.  W.  B.  Wright,  in  a  sermon  recently  delivered  at  Buffalo, 
N.  Y.,  discussed  the  dangers  which  threaten  our  republic.  After 
mentioning  the  disinclination  of  many  to  take  part  in  political 
affairs,  the  abuses  of  party  organization,  the  corruption  of  officials 
and  the  demoralizing  influence  of  the  war  spirit,  he  condemned 
what  he  called  the  "cult  which  the  euphemism  of  to-day  has  named 
'the  spirit  of  commercialism'  but  what  Christ  called  'the  worship 
of  Mammon/  "  and  added : 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  47 

I  am  not  sure  but  this  last  includes  the  four  preceding  dangers, 
as  an  acorn  includes  its  oak.  Democracies,,  we  are  told,  are  specially 
tempted  to  seek  money  with  excessive  eagerness,  because  where 
there  is  no  recognized  aristocracy  the  possession  of  great  wealth 
offers  to  ambition  the  same  prizes  which  in  aristocratic  nations  are 
conferred  by  birth.  Calm  and  conservative  thinkers  view  with 
alarm  the  dangers  which  the  worship  of  money  threatens  us. ' 

Dr.  Wright  is  correct  in  emphasizing  the  evils  which  come  from 
the  worship  of  mammon.  This  is  the  tap-root  of  all  the  trouble; 
out  of  it  grow  all  the  dangers  enumerated.  It  is  the  overweaning 
desire  to  get  rich  that  so  absorbs  the  attention  of  many  that  they 
have  no  time  left  for  the  discharge  of  civic  duties;  it  is  the  same 
thirst  for  wealth  which  perverts  party  organizations,  corrupts 
officials  and  rushes  nations  into  wars  of  conquest.  Experience, 
individual  and  national,  confirms  the  truth  of  Holy  Writ : 

For  the  love  of  money  is  the  root  of  all  evil :  which  while  some 
coveted  after,  they  have  erred  from  the  faith  and  pierced  them- 
selves through  with  many  sorrows. 


THE  MONOPOLY  MUST  BE  PKEVENTED. 

The  billion  dollar  steel  trust  will  serve  a  useful  purpose  if  it 
awakens  the  people  to  a  realization  to  the  menace  of  private  monop- 
oly. The  existence  of  such  a  combination  of  capital,  absolutely 
controlling  several  lines  of  business,  doling  out  daily  bread  to  tens 
of  thousands  of  working  men  and  dominating  a  large  part  of  the 
business  world,  is  in  itself  indefensible  and  insufferable.  The  Kan- 
sas City  platform  points  out  a  remedy — the  only  effective  remedy 
proposed.  Congress  has  power  to  regulate  interstate  commerce ;  it 
has  power  to  prescribe  the  terms  upon  which  a  corporation  or- 
ganized in  any  state  can  do  business  outside  of  the  state.  Let 
Congress  compel  all  corporations  to  take  out  a  federal  license  be- 
fore engaging  in  interstate  commerce,  or,  if  that  is  too  harsh,  let 
it  require  that  corporations  having  a  capital  above  a  designated 
amount  shall  take  out  a  license.  This  license  could  be  granted" 
by  the  interstate  commerce  commission,  or  by  some  commission 
created  for  the  purpose,  to  corporations  upon  certain  conditions. 
The  first  condition  should  be  that  there  is  to  be  no  water  in  the 
stock,  and  the  second,  that  the  corporation  is  not  attempting  to 


48  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

monopolize  any  branch  of  industry  or  the  production  of  any  article 
of  merchandise.  The  license  should  be  subject  to  revocation  if 
the  conditions  are  afterwards  violated.  It  should  be  made  unlaw- 
ful for  such  a  corporation  to  use  the  mails,  the  telegraph  lines  or 
the  railroads  outside  of  its  own  state  until  the  license  is  granted. 
Such  a  system  would  confine  a  monopoly  to  the  state  of  its  origin, 
and  even  New  Jersey  would  soon  tire  of  a  monopoly  under  such 
conditions.  This  is  the  remedy  suggested  in  the  democratic  plat- 
form; if  the  republicans  have  a  better  one  let  them  produce  it. 
They  are  in  power,  and  are  responsible  for  the  continued  existence 
of  every  trust.  They  have  the  president,  the  senate,  the  house,  the 
attorney  general  and  the  courts.  They  can  destroy  every  trust 
if  they  desire  to  do  so. 


CHINESE  IMMIGKATION. 

The  Chinese  Exclusion  Act  expires  in  1902,  and  the  American 
people  must  prepare  themselves  to  pass  upon  the  subject  of  orien- 
tal immigration. 

Those  who  are  opposed  to  the  introduction  of  cheap  labor  from 
across  the  Pacific,  are  urging  an  extension  of  the  existing  law, 
and  those  who  look  with  favor  upon  the  employment  of  Chinese 
in  this  country  are  not  idle.  The  Portland  Oregonian,  in  a  recent 
editorial,  assumes  that  the  labor  agitator  ^s  the  only  one  who  is 
alarmed  by  the  "yellow  peril,"  and  presents  the  usual  argument 
against  exclusion.  It  says: 

Elsewhere  is  noted  at  some  length  the  question  of  cheap  labor 
immigration,  suggested  by  Senator  Inman's  joint  memorial  to 
Congress.  A  word  might  also  be  said  concerning  the  local  aspect 
of  the  matter.  What  basis  of  fact  exists  for  this  terror  of  Chinese 
and  Japanese  competition  in  Oregon?  What  American  mechanic 
is  kept  out  of  a  place  by  any  Chinaman  or  Jap  in  the  city  of 
Portland?  The  Chinese  are  mostly  house  servants,  vegetable  ped- 
dlers, and  laundrymen.  Now,  where  is  the  representative  of  or- 
ganized labor  that  hankers  to  cook  in  the  kitchen  or  wash  under- 
shirts or  get  up  at  4  o'clock  to  load  his  wagon  with  vegetables? 
The  Japs  are  generally  railroad  hands  or  do  menial  work  about 
the  house.  It  is  hard  for  the  railroads  to  get  the  section  hands 
they  need,  and  American  mechanics  are  not  looking  for  chances 
to  scrub  porches  or  wash  dishes.  It  is  a  common  remark  that 
these  "heathen  devils"  are  "keeping  poor  white  girls  out  of  work." 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  49 

It  is  a  pitiful  falsehood,  for  the  fact  is  that,  with  all  the  Chinese 
and  Japanese  servants  available,  domestic  help  is  next  to  impos- 
sible to  obtain.  Equally  baseless  is  the  cry  that  the  Asiatics  spend 
no  money.  They  spend  about  as  much  as  the  thrifty  American.  As 
their  position  rises,  they  wear  good  clothes,  ride  in  street  cars 
and  indulge  the  luxuries  Chinatown  affords.  They  do  not  work 
for  starvation  wages,  as  is  sometimes  alleged,  as  the  efficient  Chinese 
cook  or  butler  is  frequently  able  to  command  higher  figures  than 
American  girls  in  the  same  line  of  work.  Perhaps  the  most  de- 
spicable of  all  the  outcries  against  the  Chinaman  is  that  he  saves 
his  money  and  sends  some  of  it  home  to  his  relatives.  If  he  earns 
his  money,  what  business  is  it  of  Mr.  Labor  Agitator  what  he  does 
with  it? 

It  will  not  be  surprising  if  this  editorial  is  re-echoed  in  republi- 
can papers  throughout  the  country.  The  same  sentiment  was  whis- 
pered ten  years  ago,  but  the  corporations  are  bolder  now. 

Let  us  analyze  the  question.  We  had  reached  a  point  where  it 
was  necessary  to  decide  whether  the  Chinese  should  be  allowed  to 
come  without  limit  or  whether  restrictions  should  be  placed  upon 
them.  The  re-appearance  of  this  question  will  compel  the  Ameri- 
can people  to  consider  the  subject  of  immigration.  Certainly  a 
welcome  should  be  extended  only  to  those  whose  coming  will, 
all  things  considered,  prove  beneficial  to  the  country,  and  only 
those  should  be  allowed  to  come  who  come  voluntarily.  Laws 
have  been  made  to  prevent  the  importation  of  contract  labor  and 
the  justice  of  these  laws  is  universally  recognized.  Laws  have  also 
been  made  to  prevent  the  dumping  of  paupers  and  criminals  upon 
our  shores,  and  no  one  will  dispute  the  wisdom  of  these  laws.  But 
for  those  who  are  not  in  the  prohibited  classes  above  mentioned, 
two  general  tests  may  be  suggested.  First,  only  those  should  be 
admitted  who  come  because  of  love  for  our  institutions  and  who 
will  add  to  the  nation's  productive  strength  in  time  of  peace  and 
to  its  defensive  strength  in  time  of  war.  Second,  only  those  should 
be  admitted  who  come  to  cast  their  lot  with  the  American  people 
and  who  are  capable  of  amalgamation  with  our  people. 

The  Chinese  do  not  comply  with  either  condition.  They  do  not 
come  here  because  of  their  admiration  for  our  form  of  govern- 
ment ;  they  have  no  thought  of  becoming  a  part  of  our  civilization, 
and  amalgamation  is  desired  neither  by  them  nor  by  us.  If  the 
gates  are  opened  to  the  Chinese  they  will  drive  our  own  laboring 
men  into  the  streets,  and  they  will  not  only  be  unfit  for  military 


50  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

duty  but  by  being  the  cause  of  race  riots  will  be  likely  to  involve 
us  in  international  complications.  We  have  already  had  some  ex- 
perience in  this  line  and  would  have  had  more  but  for  the  ex- 
clusion act.  Eace  prejudice  is  a  social  factor  which  must  always 
be  recognized  and  reckoned  with.  When  there  is  a  fair  demand 
for  labor,  the  Chinaman  can  slip  in  unnoticed,  but  whenever  in- 
dustrial depression  lessens  the  demand  for  work,  it  will  be  diffi- 
cult to  prevent  men  who  are  hungry  and  idle  from  attacking 
foreigners,  who  work  for  lower  wages,  live  on  a  lower  scale,  and 
are  exempt  from  many  of  the  burdens  of  government  which  rest 
upon  citizens. 

Home  life,  the  center  of  all  patriotic,  purifying  and  civilizing 
influences,  is  almost  entirely  wanting  among  the  Chinese  who  are 
temporarily  abiding  here.  They  huddle  together  in  the  cities  and 
transplant  upon  American  soil  the  vices  of  the  Orient  without 
accompanying  virtues. 

The  San  Francisco  Call,  speaking  of  Chinatown,  says:  "Gam- 
bling, lottery,  slavery,  are  all  there,  mingled  indistinguishably  with 
the  malign  pus  of  Asiatic  life,  planted  as  an  exotic  in  a  western 
community." 

The  presence  here  of  a  race  permanently  separated  from  us  by 
color,  dress,  customs  and  habits  of  thought,  is  a  thing  to  be  de- 
plored. If  there  are  only  a  few  such,  the  evil  can  be  tolerated 
like  any  other  small  evil,  but  without  an  exclusion  act  there  is 
every  reason  to  expect  such  an  influx  from  the  overcrowded 
provinces  of  China — an  influx  stimulated  by  the  "Six  Companies" 
and  encouraged  by  corporations  seeking  cheap  labor — as  to  compel 
prompt  and  rigorous  restrictive  measures.  Prevention  is  better 
than  cure.  The  dangers  are  real  and  will  upon  investigation  be 
apparent  to  any  one  who  takes  a  comprehensive  view  of  his  na- 
tion's welfare. 

There  has  been  a  recent  increase  in  the  immigration  of  Japan- 
ese laborers  for  service  along  Western  railroads.  Many,  though 
not  all,  of  the  objections  urged  against  the  Chinese  apply  to  Japan- 
ese laborers,  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  opposition  will  grow  in 
proportion  to  the  number  that  come.  It  has  been  intimated  that 
the  Japanese  government  is  willing  to  remedy  this — it  will  be 
satisfactory  if  it  will — but  whether  the  remedy  is  applied  by  diplo- 
macy or  by  law,  it  is  better  to  attend  to  the  matter  at  once  than 
to  invite  irritation  and  ill  feeling  by  delay. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  51 


SCHLEY  AND  SAMPSON. 

It  is  not  a  surprise  to  learn  that  Admiral  Sampson  has  been 
advanced  five  points  while  Admiral  Schley  has  been  advanced  only 
three  points.  Congress  has  also  been  asked  to  give  a  vote  of  thanks 
"to  Admiral  Sampson  and  the  officers  and  men  under  him"  for 
the  battle  of  Santiago  Bay.  In  the  history  of  this  country  there 
have  been  many  instances  of  favoritism,  but  in  all  of  our  history 
there  have  been  none  to  compare  with  the  favoritism  shown  to 
Sampson  and  the  injustice  sought  to  be  put  upon  Schley.  The 
battle  of  Santiago  Bay  was  one  of  the  greatest  sea  fights  in  the 
history  of  the  world.  Admiral  Schley  commanded  in  that  battle 
and  long  ago  the  people  learned  the  truth  and  accorded  to  him 
the  title  of  "Hero  of  Santiago  Bay."  It  is  therefore  not  material 
that  Sampson,  through  administration  influence,  has  been  ad- 
vanced above  Schley.  This  advancement  may  afford  temporary 
gratification  to  the  beneficiary,  but  it  will  not  disturb  the  proud 
position  which  Admiral  Schley  holds  in  the  affections  of  the 
American  people.  The  injustice  done  Schley  will  merely  serve  to 
advance  him  in  the  estimation  of  the  American  people — an  ad- 
vancement which  no  presidential  order  and  no  act  of  Congress 
can  in  the  least  disturb. 


THE  PRESIDENT  AN  EMPEROR. 

The  Spooner  amendment  to  the  Army  Appropriation  Bill  vests 
in  the  President  power  and  authority  which  can  be  exercised  only 
by  an  emperor.  By  voting  down  the  amendments  offered,  the 
republicans  placed  themselves  on  record  as  in  favor  of  the  exercise 
of  arbitrary  and  imperial  power  by  the  chief  executive.  No  re- 
strictions are  placed  upon  him  and  no  time  limit  is  fixed  to  his  rule. 
He  is  supreme ;  he  can  appoint  whomsoever  he  pleases ;  he  can  vest 
legislative,  judicial  and  executive  power  all  in  one  person,  and 
that  person  is  under  no  obligation  to  observe  the  Constitution  in 
dealing  with  Filipino  subjects.  And  this  is  done  in  the  name 
of  liberty!  This  is  the  policy  of  a  party  which  sprang  into  ex- 
istence to  apply  the  Declaration  of  Independence  to  men  entirely 


52  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

black!     History  presents  no  instance  of  a  transformation  so  sud- 
den and  complete. 

The  amendment  reads: 

All  military,  civil  and  judicial  powers  necessary  to  govern  the 
Philippines,  acquired  from  Spain  by  the  treaties  concluded  at 
Paris  on  the  10th  day  of  December,  1898,  and  at  Washington  on 
the  7th  day  of  November,  1900,  shall  until  otherwise  provided  by 
Congress,  be  vested  in  such  manner  as  the  President  of  the  United 
States  shall  direct  for  the  establishment  of  civil  government  and 
for  maintaining  and  protecting  the  inhabitants  of  said  islands  in 
the  free  enjoyment  of  their  liberty,  property  and  religion. 

Provided,  that  all  franchises  granted  under  the  authority  here- 
of shall  contain  a  reservation  of  the  right  to  alter,  amend  or  repeal 
the  same. 

Until  a  permanent  government  shall  have  been  established  in 
said  islands  full  reports  shall  be  made  to  Congress  on  or  before 
the  first  day  of  each  regular  session  of  all  legislative  acts  and  pro- 
ceedings of  the  temporary  government  instituted  under  the  pro- 
visions hereof  and  full  reports  of  the  acts  and  doings  of  said 
government  and  as  to  the  condition  of  the  archipelago  aud  of  its 
people  shall  be  made  to  the  President,  including  all  information 
which  may  be  useful  to  the  Congress  in  providing  a  more  per- 
manent government. 

Provided,  that  no  sale  or  lease  or  other  disposition  of  the  public 
lands  or  the  timber  thereon,  or  the  mining  rights  therein  shall  be 
made,  and  provided  further  that  no  franchise  shall  be  granted 
which  is  not  approved  by  the  President  of  the  United  States  and 
is  not,  in  his  judgment,  clearly  necessary  for  the  immediate  gov- 
ernment of  the  islands  and  indispensable  for  the  interest  of  the 
people  thereof,  and  which  cannot,  without  great  public  mischief, 
be  postponed  until  the  establishment  of  permanent  civil  govern- 
ment; and  all  such  franchises  shall  terminate  one  year  after  the 
establishment  of  such  permanent  civil  government. 

The  provisions  in  regard  to  franchises  are  of  little  value,  be- 
cause the  President  must  rely  upon  the  representations  of  ap- 
pointees in  the  Philippines  and  their  statement  will  be  ex-parte. 
Only  the  men  who  want  concessions  will  be  heard — the  Filipinos 
will  have  no  voice  in  the  matter. 

What  advantage  is  there  in  having  the  franchises  terminate  one 
year  after  a  civil  government  is  established,  if  that  government 
is  to  be  colonial  in  character  and  administered  by  foreigners  ? 

If  that  provision  has  any  influence  at  all,  it  will  simply  give 
a  powerful  group  of  concessionaires  pecuniary  interest  in  post- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  53 

poning  the  establishment  of  civil  government.  It  may  stimulate 
campaign  contributions  and  lead  to  the  establishment  of  a  bureau 
in  the  United  States  for  the  dissemination  of  literature  prejudicial 
to  the  Filipinos. 

If  the  republican  party  is  powerless  to  protect  the  people  of 
the  United  States  from  monopoly,  how  can  it  be  expected  to  protect 
the  helpless  inhabitants  of  remote  islands? 

In  the  campaign  of  1900,  the  republicans  strenuously  denied 
that  they  had  any  imperialistic  intentions  and  their  denials  de- 
ceived many,  but  here  is  proof  that  cannot  be  disputed.  The 
President  is  an  emperor,  and  will  remain  so  until  the  republican, 
party  reverses  its  policy  or  until  the  people  retire  that  party  from 
power. 


IS  THIS  AEISTOCEACY? 

Eead  the  following  letters: 

UNITED  STATES  TORP-EDO  STATION",  NEWPORT,  R.  I.,  Feb.  13,  1901. 
Admiral  William  T.  Sampson,  U.  8.  N. 

DEAR  SIR. — The  new  bill  whereby  six  gunners  are  to  be  com- 
missioned ensigns  tempts  me  to  write  you,  trusting  you  will 
pardon  the  liberty  I  take  in  so  doing. 

As  I  served  on  the  flagship  New  York  during  your  command 
of  the  fleet  you  will  know  whether  my  abilities,  whatever  they  may 
be,  are  of  such  merit  as  to  warrant  me  filling  the  position  of  en- 
sign. I  would  say  here  that  I  never  use  tobacco  or  liquor  in  any 
form. 

If  in  your  estimation  I  am  worthy  of  this  position  I  should 
be  most  grateful  to  you  if  you  will  recommend  me  to  the  depart- 
ment. I  am,  very  respectfully  yours,  CHARLES  MORGAN, 

Gunner,  U.  S.  1ST. 

This  was  the  indorsement  which  the  admiral  placed  on  the  ap- 
plication : 

NAVY  YARD,  BOSTON,  MASS.,  Feb.  14. 

Indorsement  1 :  Eespectfully  forwarded  to  the  navy  department 
for  its  consideration. 

2.  Mr.  Morgan  has  good  professional  ability.  He  also  has,  which 
distinguishes  him  from  most  other  warrant  officers,  a  gentlemanly 
bearing.  If  he  were  to  be  commissioned  as  an  ensign  he  would 
probably  compare  favorably,  both  professionally  and  in  personal 
conduct  and  bearing,  with  other  officers  of  that  grade  as  far  as  his 
technical  education  would  permit. 


54  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

3.  It  is  earnestly  to  be  hoped,  however,  that  the  secretary  of 
the  navy  will  not  find  it  necessary  to  take  advantage  of  the  author- 
ity which  I  understand  is  to  be  granted  him  to  appoint  a  certain 
number  of  warrant  officers  to  the  grade  of  ensigns. 

While  it  is  true  that  these  men  are  selected  from  a  large  class 
of  men  of  very  unusual  ability,  which  distinguishes  them  as  per- 
haps the  professional  equals  of  their  officers  as  far  as  their  technical 
education  stands,  it  is  also  true  that  they  are  recruited  from  a  class 
of  men  who  have  not  had  the  social  advantages  which  are  requisite 
for  a  commissioned  officer. 

It  is  submitted  that  in  time  of  peace  the  navy's  function  con- 
sists to  a  certain  extent  of  representing  the  country  abroad,  and 
it  is  important  that  the  navy's  representatives  should  be  men  of 
at  least  refinement.  While  there  is  perhaps  a  certain  few  among 
the  warrant  officers  who  could  fulfill  this  requirement,  I  am  of 
the  opinion  that  the  vast  majority  of  them  could  not. 

Once  they  are  commissioned  they  will  have  the  same  social 
standing  as  other  officers,  and  no  distinction  properly  could  be 
made  in  extending  general  invitations.  The  consequences  that 
would  arise  from  their  acceptance  might  not  redound  to  the  credit 
of  the  navy  or  the  country  which  the  navy  represents. 

I  do  not  mean  to  detract  from  the  sterling  worth  of  the  war- 
rant officers  of  the  navy.  I  merely  mean  to  suggest  to  the  de- 
partment that,  unfortunately  for  them,  they  have  been  deprived 
of  certain  natural  advantages,  and,  in  consequence,  their  proper 
place  is  that  of  leading  men  among  the  crew  and  not  as  represen- 
tatives of  the  country  in  the  ward  room  and  steerage. 

4.  I  request  that  this  may  be  brought  to  the  personal  attention 
of  the  secretary  of  the  navy. 

W.  T.  SAMPSOX, 
Hear  Admiral  U.  S.  N.,  Commandant. 

And  when  you  have  read  them  suppress  your  indignation  long 
enough  to  ask  yourself  whether  Admiral  Sampson  is  a  snob  and 
an  aristocrat,  or  whether  he  is  merely  a  representative  of  the 
"new  order  of  things"  which  is  to  follow  militarism  and  imperial- 
ism. If  this  is  only  an  individual  opinion  no  condemnation  can 
be  too  severe,  but  if  he  speaks  for  those  who  are  dominating  the 
administration  and  shaping  our  national  policy,  then  the  rebuke 
should  be  administered  to  the  system.  Gunner  Morgan  will  prove 
a  public  benefactor  if  this  correspondence  opens  the  eyes  of  the 
American  people  to  the  fact  that  we  cannot  have  imperialism, 
with  its  large  army  and  navy,  without  accepting  with  it  aristocracy 
in  society  and  plutocracy  in  government. 

If  it  is  the  aim  of  this  nation  to   shine  among  the  "world 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  55 

powers/'  we  will  have  to  have  titles  and  ranks  and  orders  of  no- 
bility or  our  representatives  will  not  feel  at  home  abroad.  Samp- 
son's asininity  can  almost  be  forgiven  if  it  aids  in  restoring  that 
American  simplicity  and  democracy  which  were  once  the  pride  of 
our  nation. 


WHEEE  TITLE  EESTS. 

Those  who  insist  that  our  title  to  the  Philippines  is  perfect  base 
their  opinion  on  the  deed  given  us  by  Spain  in  the  Paris  treaty. 

A  republican  newspaper,  commenting  at  length  upon  our  ab- 
stract of  title,  says : 

Prior  to  the  Paris  treaty  the  record  title  was  in  Spain.  Spain 
conveyed  the  Philippines  to  the  United  States  and  the  record 
title  is  now  with  us.  It  is  necessary  that  title  rest  somewhere, 
and  the  abstract  will  always  locate  it.  In  this  instance  the  ab- 
stract locates  the  Philippine  title  in  the  United  States  of  America. 

Let  us  take  a  look  at  this  position : 

In  the  Paris  treaty,  Spain  "ceded"  to  the  United  States  the 
Philippine  Islands  and  the  Islands  of  Guam  and  Porto  Eico.  Ac- 
cording to  this  republican  organ  that  cession  placed  the  title  to 
that  territory  in  the  United  States,  for  "it  is  necessary  that  title 
rest  somewhere." 

In  the  same  treaty  Spain  "relinquished"  its  sovereignty  over 
the  island  of  Cuba. 

Where  did  the  title  to  Cuba  rest? 

It  rested  exactly  where  it  belonged — with  the  sovereign  people 
of  Cuba;  and  the  eminent  lawyers  who  framed  the  Paris  treaty 
knew  that  it  was  not  necessary  for  Spain  to  convey  title  to 
Cuba,  because  the  title  rested  in  the  Cuban  people  and  the  re- 
linquishment  was  merely  formal  notice  to  the  world  that  Spain 
recognized  a  fact. 

Now  if  a  simple  relinquishment  was  sufficient  in  the  case  of 
Cuba,  it  was  so  because  of  the  fact  that  regardless  of  what  deeds 
might  be  executed,  the  title  to  Cuba  rested  with  the  Cuban  people, 
Spain  could  have  done  nothing  to  effect  that  title. 

If  the  title  rested  with  the  people  of  Cuba,  then  why  did  not 
the  title  to  the  Philippines  rest  with  the  people  of  those  islands  ? 

Had  Spain  ceded  Cuba  to  the  United  States,  the  cession  would 


56  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

not  have  altered  the  fact  that  the  title  to  Cuba  rested  with  the 
Cuban  people,  and  the  cession  of  the  Philippines  by  Spain  to  the 
United  States  does  not  alter  the  fact  that  the  title  to  the  Philip- 
pines rests  with  the  Filipinos. 

To  be  sure,  a  kingdom  may  hold  title  to  a  territory,  so  long  as 
it  maintains  order.  But  although  a  government  is  the  govern- 
ment of  kings,  "it  is  the  right  of  the  people  to  alter  or  to  abolish 
it,  and  to  institute  a  new  government,  laying  its  foundation  on 
such  principles  and  organizing  its  powers  in  such  form  as  to  them 
shall  seem  most  likely  to  effect  their  safety  and  happiness."  This 
is  not  only  an  American  principle;  it  is  world  wide,  and  the  le- 
gality of  a  revolution  depends  upon  its  success. 

Prior  to  the  Spanish-American  war,  the  people  of  Cuba  and 
the  people  of  the  Philippines  had  taken  up  arms  in  defense  of 
their  liberty.  Had  our  war  with  Great  Britain  been  a  failure,  our 
own  declaration  of  independence  would  have  had  no  legal  stand- 
ing. But  our  rebellion  against  King  George  became  a  "revolu- 
tion"— because  we  were  successful;  and  it  is  generally  agreed  that 
our  national  era  dates  from  our  declaration  of  independence  and 
not  from  the  treaty  which  Great  Britain  made  with  us  in  de- 
claring peace,  and  in  conveying  to  our  forefathers  the  territory 
for  which  they  had  fought. 

So,  long  before  the  beginning  of  the  Spanish-American  war, 
the  people  of  the  Philippines  and  the  people  of  Cuba  had,  by 
their  own  acts,  laid  the  ground  work  for  the  record  title  to  their 
native  land.  All  that  was  necessary  to  make  their  declarations 
of  independence  the  title  deeds  for  the  sovereign  people  of  those 
territories  was  successful  revolution  against  Spanish  authority. 

Were  those  revolutions  successful?     They  were. 

In  the  case  of  Cuba,  the  armies  of  the  United  States  went  to 
that  island,  and  with  the  aid  of  the  Cuban  soldier}7,  swept  the 
Spanish  army  to  the  sea.  Spanish  rule  in  Cuba  was  destroyed, 
and  the  Cubans'  title  to  Cuba  was  complete. 

In  the  case  of  the  Philippines,  the  United  States  navy  and  army 
went  to  those  islands,  and  with  the  active  assistance  and  co- 
operation of  the  Filipinos  destroyed  Spanish  rule.  With  the  de- 
struction of  Spanish  rule,  the  Filipinos'  title  to  the  Philippine 
Islands  was  complete. 

In  each  instance  the  title  dates  back  to  a  demand  for,  or  a 
declaration  of,  independence. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  57 

That  was  the  first  link.  The  next  was  the  government  organ- 
ized— on  wheels,  if  you  please — but  organized,  nevertheless,  in 
hoth  Cuba  and  the  Philippines.  The  final  link  in  the  chain  of 
title  was  the  destruction  of  Spanish  rule  and  the  successful  ter- 
mination of  the  Eevolution  on  the  part  of  the  Cuban  and  the 
Philippine  people. 

There  is  the  chain  of  title;  one  that  cannot  be  destroyed  or 
broken,  in  conscience,  whatever  sophistry  we  may  employ;  one 
that  cannot  be  questioned,  in  truth,  whatever  specious  pleading 
we  may  adopt. 

There  is  the  title  to  Cuba  resting  in  the  Cuban  people  as  firmly 
as  our  title  rested  in  the  colonist  at  the  close  of  the  war  of  the 
Eevolution.  There  is  the  title  to  the  Philippine  Islands  resting 
as  firmly  in  the  Filipinos  as  Cuba's  title  rests  in  the  Cubans. 

Our  Commissioners  did  not  dare  to  permit  Spain  to  cede  Cuba 
to  the  United  States,  because  they  knew  that  because  the  Cuban 
Eevolution  was  successful  Spain  no  longer  had  title  to  Cuba. 
And  when  Spain  ceded  the  Philippine  Islands  to  the  United  States 
Spain  conveyed  to  this  country  nothing  more  than  the  title  she 
possessed;  and  that  title,  such  as  it  was,  was  destroyed  the  mo- 
ment that  the  American  forces  and  Aguinaldo's  followers  took 
possession  of  the  City  of  Manila. 

This  republican  newspaper  in  one  respect  is  right.  "It  is  nec- 
essary that  title  must  rest  somewhere,  and  the  abstract  will 
always  locate  it."  In  real  estate  transactions  many  deeds  have 
been  placed  on  record — deeds  that  are  of  no  importance  in  de- 
termining title.  Often  these  deeds  are  confusing,  but  the  honest 
abstractor  picks  up  his  chain  of  title  and  follows  it  back  in  or- 
derly lines,  ignoring  the  inconsequential  deeds  in  his  search  for 
the  real  title.  So  it  is  of  no  moment  that  there  is  on  this  record 
a  quit  claim  deed  from  Spain  to  the  United  States  with  respect 
to  the  Philippine  Islands.  The  chain  of  title  leads  directly  to 
the  people  of  the  Philippines ;  and  although  there  were  a  hundred 
deeds  from  a  hundred  kingdoms  they  would  not  affect  the  Fili- 
pino's title  to  the  land  of  his  nativity  and  to  the  soil  which  for 
a  century  has  been  baptized  in  the  blood  of  Filipinos  who  have 
loved  liberty  enough  to  die  for  it. 


58  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

THE  FIFTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS. 

The  record  of  the  Fifty-sixth  Congress  is  completed,  and  it  is 
not  an  enviable  one.  For  extravagance  it  has  never  been  equaled, 
and  no  previous  congress  has  ever  shown  anything  like  the  con- 
tempt for  American  principles  and  traditions.  The  republican 
party  in  1896  promised  international  bimetallism  and  this  Con- 
gress redeemed  the  promise  by  retiring  the  greenbacks  and  giving 
the  country  as  large  a  dose  of  the  gold  standard  as  it  thought 
the  patient  was  able  to  bear. 

It  has  fastened  a  large  army  upon  the  United  States — an  army 
larger  than  the  President  would  have  been  willing  to  defend 
during  the  late  campaign. 

It  has  violated  the  solemn  promise  made  to  Cuba  and  demanded 
a  supervision  of  Cuban  affairs  which  amount  to  a  denial  of  in- 
dependence. 

It  has  conferred  upon  the  President  authority  over  the  Philip- 
pines as  unlimited,  as  arbitrary  and  as  tyrannical  as  George  III 
ever  exercised  over  the  colonists. 

In  addition  to  its  sins  of  commission  it  has  sins  of  omission 
to  answer  for. 

It  has  failed  to  respond  to  the  demand  of  the  wage-earners  for 
relief  in  the  way  of  shorter  hours  and  it  has  neglected  to  abolish 
government  by  injunction. 

It  has  refused  to  give  the  people  any  relief  from  extortionate 
railroad  rates  and  has  declined  to  enact  anti-trust  legislation,  al- 
though a  billion  dollar  trust  was  organized  while  it  was  in  session. 
It  has  repudiated  the  party's  promise  in  regard  to  the  inter- 
oceanic  canal.  For  years  the  republicans  advocated  the  Xica- 
ragua  canal;  in  1900  they  substituted  an  endorsement  of  an 
Isthmian  canal,  but  the  trans-continental  railroad  lines  have  suffi- 
cient influence  with  the  republican  party  to  prevent  its  carrying 
out  any  canal  project. 

It  has  failed  to  recognize  the  desire  of  the  people  for  election 
of  senators  by  a  popular  vote;  and  it  would  have  committed  the 
country  to  the  infamous  ship  subsidy  legislation  but  for  the  filibus- 
tering resorted  to  by  the  democrats,  populists  and  silver  republi- 
cans. A  fifty  million  dollar  River  and  Harbor  bill  was  also  de- 
feated by  a  few  filibusters  led  by  Senator  Carter  of  Montana. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  59 

This  is  the  record — not  all  of  it,  but  enough  of  it.  These 
things  are  known  to  the  reading  public  and  yet  republican  farm- 
ers continue  to  vote  the  republican  ticket,  republican  laboring  men 
continue  to  defend  their  party  and  republican  business  men  raise 
no  protest  against  what  is  going  on.  Great  corporate  interests 
furnish  campaign  funds,  dictate  platforms,  make  nominations  and 
dominate  administrations.  To  what  extreme  can  the  republican 
leaders  go  before  they  provoke  remonstrance  and  repudiation  ? 


APPLIED  CHRISTIANITY. 

Dr.  W.  M.  Hindman,  of  the  First  Presbyterian  church  of 
Lincoln,  Xeb.,  in  a  recent  sermon  on  the  Good  Samaritan,  drew 
a  practical  distinction  between  pity  and  sympathy.  He  said: 

All  believe  in  the  Good  Samaritan;  all  admire  him  for  the 
sympathy  he  bore  the  unfortunate.  His  sympathy  was  more  than 
sentiment ;  it  was  deeper  than  pity.  Men  of  independence  despise 
pity;  they  crave  sympathy.  He  who  pities  feels  for  you;  he  who 
sympathizes  feels  with  you.  There  is  a  vast  difference  between 
the  two.  The  priest  and  Levite  pitied,  and  passed  by  on  the 
other  side.  The  Samaritan  sympathized  and  got  down  with  the 
man  in  his  suffering.  He  sacrificed  his  own  comfort  to  make  the 
needy  comfortable;  he  suffered  with  the  sufferer;  he  helped  him 
out  of  his  trouble. 

Sympathy  is  applied  Christianity;  it  is  a  fulfillment  of  the 
command,  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself." 

In  the  course  of  the  sermon  Dr.  Hindman  emphasized  the  fact 
that  those  who  would  help  their  fellow-men  must  go  among  them 
and  share  their  burdens,  and  quoted  the  lines  so  often  used  as  a 
rebuke  to  those  pastors  who  never  get  within  hailing  distance  of 
their  flock. 

A  parish  priest  of  austerity 

Climbed  up  in  a  high  church  steeple 
To  be  near  to  God,  that  he  might  hand 

God's  word  unto  the  people. 

And  in  sermon  script  he  daily  wrote 
What  he  thought  was  sent  from  heaven, 
And  he  dropped  it  down  on  the  people's  head 
Two  times,  one  day  in  seven. 


60  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

In  his  time  God  said,  "Corne  down  and  die," 

And  he  cried  from  out  his  steeple: 
"Where  art  thou,  Lord?"  and  the  Lord  replied, 
"Down  here  among  the  people." 


SHOULD  BE  ABOVE  SUSPICION. 

The  position  taken  by  Congressman  Hull  in  regard  to  his  in- 
vestment in  the  Philippine  Islands  opens  up  a  question  which 
ought  to  receive  serious  consideration  at  the  hands  of  the  Ameri- 
can people.  He  is  chairman  of  the  house  committee  on  military 
affairs,  and  is  also  president  of  the  Philippine  Lumber  and  De- 
velopment Company.  As  chairman  of  the  committee,  Mr.  Hull 
had  charge  of  the  bill  for  the  increase  of  the  army;  as  president 
of  the  Philippine  Lumber  and  Development  Company  he  was  in- 
terested in  increasing  the  army  for  the  protection  of  his  Philippine 
investments.  He  confesses  that  the  investment  in  the  Philippines 
depended  upon  political  conditions,  for  in  explaining  his  connec- 
tion with  the  company  he  said : 

I  will  say  further  to  the  gentleman  from  Tennessee,  and  to  this 
House,  that  while  the  campaign  was  on,  the  company  with  which 
I  am  associated  called  a  halt  in  their  enterprise  and  notified  every 
one  of  the  stockholders  that  if  Bryan  should  be  elected  not  one 
dollar  would  we  invest  in  the  Philippines,  but  if  McKinley  should 
be  elected  we  would  invest  all  the  money  that  we  pleased,  believ- 
ing it  would  have  favorable  return  by  the  restoration  of  order 
and  good  government  in  the  Philippines. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  democratic  party  declared 
against  a  large  army;  the  size  of  the  army  was,  therefore,  an  issue 
in  the  campaign.  The  question  arises,  can  Mr.  Hull  discharge  his 
duty  to  the  public  and  fairly  and  impartially  do  the  work  of  a 
congressman  and  committeeman  and  at  the  same  time  look  after 
investments  in  the  Philippine  Islands  which  are  so  intimately  con- 
nected with  the  work  of  Mr.  Hull's  committee?  The  Credit-Mo- 
bilier  scandal  relegated  a  large  number  of  congressmen  to  private 
life,  and  yet  the  connection  between  Mr.  Hull,  the  chairman  of 
the  military  committee,  and  Mr.  Hull,  the  capitalist,  is  much 
closer  than  the  connection  between  an  ordinary  congressman  and 
the  Credit-Mobilier. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  61 

Mr.  Hull  says  if  the  time  ever  comes  when  he  is  not  permitted 
to  invest  in  a  legitimate  enterprise,  he  will  leave  politics.  But 
would  he  have  invested  in  this  enterprise  if  he  had  been  out  of 
politics?  He  is  president  of  the  company,  was  there  any  reason 
for  his  selection  other  than  his  political  prominence? 

Mr.  Hull  is  too  intelligent  a  man  not  to  see  the  impropriety 
of  his  position,  and  it  indicates  a  very  low  standard  of  morality 
when  his  republican  colleagues  in  the  House  defend  his  action. 

When  John  Quincy  Adams  entered  the  House  of  Eepresentatives 
he  sold  his  bank  stock  in  order  that  he  might  not  be  pecuniarily 
interested  in  legislation  on  that  subject.  The  difference  between 
Mr.  Adams  and  Mr.  Hull  is  obvious. 

A  few  years  ago  a  Senate  committee  investigated  the  charge 
that  certain  senators  had  speculated  in  sugar  stock  while  the  sen- 
ate was  considering  the  tariff  on  sugar,  amd  everybody  recognized 
that  it  was  not  legitimate.  One  senator  explained  that  his  son 
had  speculated  some  without  his  knowledge,  while  another  senator 
admitted  a  purchase  of  sugar  stock  but  insisted  that  the  servant 
girl  sent  a  dispatch  which  he  had  written,  but  afterwards  decided 
not  to  send.  One  senator  only,  Mr.  Quay,  of  Pennsylvania,  ac- 
knowledged and  defended  such  transactions. 

We  now  have  a  considerable  number  of  men  in  official  position 
who  are  directly  and  intimately  connected  with  large  corporations, 
and  through  these  corporations  are  pecuniarily  interested  in  the 
legislation  which  they  have  to  pass  upon.  Is  this  fair  to  the  pub- 
lic? The  Express  companies  are  interested  in  postal  legislation 
because  the  post-office  department  is  a  competitor  with  them  in 
the  carrying  of  small  packages  and  newspapers.  Senator  Platt 
of  New  York  is  connected  with  one  of  the  great  express  com- 
panies; is  he  in  position  to  protect  the  interests  of  the  people  at 
large  on  such  a  subject?  Congress  deals  with  interstate  railroad 
rates  and  discriminations,  besides  having  supervision  over  the  com- 
pensation paid  to  railroads  for  carrying  mail.  Senator  Depew  is 
so  closely  connected  with  the  railroad  interests  of  the  country  that 
he  cannot  be  expected  to  represent  the  people's  side  of  any  ques- 
tion in  which  the  railroads  are  interested.  Senator  Depew,  how- 
ever, is  only  one  of  the  railroad  attorneys  in  congress;  there  are 
others. 

How  many  senators  and  representatives  have  stock  in  the  trusts 


62  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

which  are  denounced  by  republican  platforms  and  protected  by 
republican  representatives  ? 

The  officials  whose  names  have  been  mentioned  are  not  worse 
than  some  others,  but  they  are  the  most  conspicuous  representatives 
of  their  class.  They  are  not  so  much  to  blame  as  the  people  who 
elect  them.  Just  as  long  as  the  voters  are  indifferent  to  public 
affairs,  just  so  long  will  the  officers  and  agents  of  great  corporate 
interests  enter  public  life,  not  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the 
interests  of  the  people  generally,  but  for  the  purpose  of  protect- 
ing or  advancing  their  private  interests.  Just  as  long  as  voters 
are  willing  to  forgive  the  offense,  just  so  long  will  public  officials 
sell  their  political  influence  to  the  syndicates  and  combinations 
which  infest  legislative  halls  and  prey  upon  the  public  through 
special  legislation.  The  public  servant  should  be  above  suspicion,  he 
should  prize  a  clean  record  and  a  reputation  for  fidelity  above  dol- 
lars, but  we  cannot  expect  such  public  servants  until  the  voters 
themselves  are  willing  to  punish  betrayals  of  trust. 


PROF.  SEALER'S  OPINION. 

According  to  the  St.  Louis  Republic,  Prof.  Shaler,  a  geologist 
of  Harvard  College,  predicts  such  an  increase  in  the  production 
of  gold  as  to  lessen  its  purchasing  power  and  compel  a  return  to 
silver.  He  says: 

If  the  price  of  gold  goes  down,  another  metal  must  be  looked 
for  as  a  token  of  international  value.  I  think  this  metal  will  be 
silver,  because  silver  is  not  found  in  alluvial  plains,  and  because, 
owing  to  the  difficulty  in  mining,  it  will  never  change  in  value. 

Within  the  past  few  years  men  have  come  to  realize  that  a 
large  portion  of  the  earth's  surface  is  charged  with  gold.  Gold 
is  indissoluble,  and  when  gravel  banks  are  cut  away  it  is  not  easily 
carried  off  by  streams  to  the  sea,  as  is  the  case  with  other  metals. 
Instead,  it  is  carried  along,  broken  up  into  finer  and  finer  frag- 
ments and  gradually  deposited  over  alluvial  plains. 

The  new  systems  of  mining  which  have  recently  been  discovered 
will  have  produced  by  the  middle  of  the  present  century  an  almost 
intolerable  supply  of  gold.  I  cannot  say  definitely  what  the  in- 
crease will  be,  but  I  should  think  at  the  least  that  the  present 
supply  will  be  quadrupled. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  63 

When  the  supply  of  gold  becomes  "intolerable,"  it  will  be  inter- 
esting to  watch  the  financiers  shift  over  to  the  silver  side  of  the 
question.  Between  1850  and  1860,  when  the  gold  supply  was  in- 
creasing, the  money  changers  were  firm  advocates  of  silver  and 
they  will  be  again  if  conditions  become  such  as  to  make  silver 
the  scarcer  metal.  Bimetallists,  however,  still  believe  that  the 
world  can  use  to  advantage  all  the  precious  metal,  both  gold  and 
silver,  that  is  likely  to  be  discovered. 


EXPLOITERS  ON  THE  GROUND. 

During  the  debate  on  the  Philippine  amendment,  Senator  Till- 
man  called  attention  to  a  communication  addressed  by  Judge  Taft, 
of  the  Benevolent  Assimilation  Commission,  to  the  secretary  of 
war.  The  Judge  asked  that  the  message,  if  approved  by  the 
secretary,  be  transmitted  "to  proper  senators  and  representatives." 
There  is  nothing  to  show  how  the  "proper"  senators  and  representa- 
tives were  to  be  distinguished  from  the  others,  but  he  seems  'to 
have  had  confidence  that  Secretary  Root  would  exercise  discre- 
tion in  the  matter.  In  this  remarkable  message  he  said:  "Until 
its  passage  (the  Spooner  amendment)  no  purely  central  civil 
government  can  be  established,  no  public  franchise  of  any  kind 
granted,  and  no  substantial  investment  of  private  capital  in  in- 
ternal improvements  possible." 

Here  we  have  the  reason  for  the  Spooner  amendment.  The 
franchise-grabbers  were  on  hand  and  the  private  capital  was 
waiting  for  a  chance  to  begin  internal  improvements.  What 
an  opportunity  for  street  car  lines,  water  plants  and  lighting 
systems !  When  we  see  how  these  franchises  have  been  given 
away  in  this  country,  where  the  people  have  a  right  to  vote,  we 
can  imagine  the  liberty  that  will  be  allowed  where  the  rulers 
are  not  restrained  by  the  victims. 

Judge  Taft's  remark  recalls  an  interview  given  out  by  an 
imperialist  before  the  treaty  was  signed.  He  was  a  foreign  consul 
stationed  at  Manila  and  came  to  this  country  to  help  organize 
a  syndicate  for  the  development  of  the  islands.  He  said  that  his 
syndicate  would  establish  banks,  lighting  plants,  water  systems, 
street  car  lines,  railroads,  factories,  etc.,  etc.,  and  in  his  inter- 
view he  explained  that  it  was  the  "duty"  of  the  United  States 


64  .    The  Commoner  Condensed. 

to  hold  the  Philippine  Islands  permanently.  In  other  words, 
he  was  satisfied  that  the  United  States  ought  to  hold  the  Fili- 
pinos while  his  syndicate  developed  them.  The  opponents  of  a 
colonial  policy  have  pointed  out  that  the  people  would  pay  the 
expenses  while  the  corporations  would  reap  the  profits.  In  the 
very  beginning  the  opponents  of  imperialism  asked:  If  this 
question  is  to  be  settled  on  the  basis  of  dollars  and  cents,  who 
will  insure  the  nation  that  the  receipts  will  equal  the  expendi- 
tures? Who  will  guarantee  that  the  income  from  the  Philip- 
pines, be  it  great  or  small,  will  find  its  way  back  to  the  pockets 
of  the  people,  who,  through  taxation,  will  furnish  the  money? 
But  the  Taft  Commission  goes  on  to  say: 

Sale  of  public  lands  and  allowance  of  mining  claims  impossible 
until  Spooner  bill.  Hundreds  of  American  miners  on  ground 
awaiting  law  to  perfect  claims.  More  coming.  Good  element 
in  pacification.  Urgently  recommend  amendment  Spooner  bill 
so  that  its  operation  be  not  postponed  until  complete  suppression 
of  all  insurrection,  but  only  until  in  president's  judgment  civil 
government  may  be  safely  established.* 

So  it  seems  that  American  miners  are  on  hand  ready  to  take 
charge  of  the  minerals  as  soon  as  they  can  perfect  their  claims. 
Of  course,  as  the  President  has  frequently  told  us,  our  nation 
is  not  actuated  by  any  sordid  thought  of  gain  in  taking  the 
Philippines;  it  is  all  a  matter  of  "duty  and  destiny."  But  it  is 
probably  necessary  to  give  away  their  franchises  and  their  valuable 
mines  in  order  to  convince  them  that  our  interest  in  them  is 
purely  unselfish  and  benevolent. 

The  report  of  the  Taft  Commission  shows  that  the  islands  con- 
tain "seventy-three  million  acres  of  land,  of  which  less  than 
five  millions  are  held  in  private  ownership,  leaving  in  public 
lands  over  sixty-eight  million  acres."  The  most  hide-bound  par- 
tisan can  have  no  reason  to  doubt  the  purpose  of  the  administra- 
tion to  turn  over  the  land  of  the  Filipinos  to  capitalists  and 
adventurers  after  reading  the  following  from  the  Taft  report: 

It  is  thought  that  a  system  of  laws  of  public  lands  can  be 
inaugurated  without  waiting  until  the  survey  is  completed.  The 
commission  has  received  a  sufficient  number  of  applications  for 
the  purchase  of  public  lands  to  know  that  large  amounts  of 
American  capital  are  only  awaiting  the  opportunity  to  invest  in 
the  rich  agricultural  field  which  may  here  be  developed.  In  view 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  65 

of  the  decision  that  the  military  government  has  no  power  to 
part  with  the  public  land  belonging  to  the  United  States,  and 
that  the  power  rests  alone  in  Congress,  it  becomes  very  essential, 
to  assist  the  development  of  these  islands  and  their  prosperity, 
that  Congressional  authority  be  vested  in  the  government  of  the 
islands  to  adopt  a  proper  public-land  system,  and  to  sell  the 
land  upon  proper  terms.  There  should,  of  course,  be  restrictions 
preventing  the  acquisition  of  too  large  quantities  by  any  individ- 
ual or  corporation,  but  those  restrictions  should  only  be  imposed 
after  giving  due  weight  to  the  circumstance  that  capital  can- 
not be  secured  for  the  development  of  the  islands  unless  the 
investment  may  be  sufficiently  great  to  justify  the  expenditure 
of  large  amounts  for  expensive  machinery  and  equipments.  Es- 
pecially is  this  true  in  the  cultivation  of  sugar  land. 

******* 

Restricted  powers  of  a  military  government  referred  to  in  dis- 
cussing the  public  lands  are  also  painfully  apparent  in  respect 
to  mining  claims  and  the  organization  of  railroad,  banking,  and 
other  corporations,  and  the  granting  of  franchises  generally.  It 
is  necessary  that  there  be  somebody  or  officer  vested  with  legisla- 
tive authority  to  pass  laws  which  shall  afford  opportunity  to 
capital  to  make  investment  here.  This  is  the  true  and  most 
lasting  method  of  pacification. 

This  is  military  genius!  It  is  all  done  for  purpose  of  pacifi- 
cation !  The  Filipinos  are  now  fighting  for  their  homes  and  the 
land  which  they  have  occupied  from  time  immemorial.  Take 
away  their  land  and  they  will  have  nothing  left  to  defend !  How 
simple  the  plan!  Strange  that  it  had  not  been  thought  of  be- 
fore ! 

Weyler  starved  the  Cubans  so  that  they  had  no  strength  left 
to  fight  with,  but  the  Taft  plan  is  much  more  effective  because 
it  leaves  the  Filipinos  nothing  to  fight  for. 

Unless  the  conscience  of  the  American  people  is  seared  there 
must  be  a  revolt  against  the  proposition  to  surrender  our  prin- 
ciples of  government,  our  sense  of  justice  and  our  ideas  of  public 
morality  at  the  demand  of  the  greedy  and  conscienceless  syndi- 
cates which  are  hovering  like  vultures  over  the  Philippine  Islands. 


66  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


IV. 
A  SAMPLE  OF  HAEMONY. 

It  is  fortunate  for  the  democracy  of  the  nation  that  at  the 
very  beginning  of  the  fight  that  re-organizers  furnish  a  sample  of 
the  harmony  which  they  recommend  to  the  party  at  large.  St. 
Louis,  the  chief  city  of  one  of  the  great  democratic  states,  is 
chosen  as  the  theatre  for  the  exhibition  of  this  model  reconcilia- 
tion !  A  mayor  is  to  be  chosen  who  will  hold  office  during  the 
World's  Fair,  and  certain  men  who  did  not  think  it  important 
that  the  nation  should  have  a  democratic  president  are  convinced 
that  it  is  a  matter  of  paramount  importance  that  St.  Louis  should 
have  a  democratic  mayor.  Of  course,  it  was  thought  necessary 
that  so  important  an  office  at  so  important  a  time  should  be 
filled  by  a  man  of  "eminent  respectability,"  but  it  is  strange 
that  among  the  many  thousands  in  St.  Louis  who  are  in  the 
habit  of  voting  the  democratic  ticket,  not  one  could  be  found 
who  measured  up  to  the  standard  set  by  the  re-organizers. 

Mr.  Holla  Wells,  the  gentleman  who  was  nominated  by  the 
democratic  city  convention,  renounced  his  allegiance  to  the  demo- 
cratic party  in  1896,  and  resigned  the  presidency  of  the  St. 
Louis  Democratic  club.  He  actively  co-operated  with  the  bolting 
contingent  who  supported  the  republican  ticket  that  year,  and  in 
1898  he  openly  opposed  the  democratic  candidate  for  Congress  in 
his  district.  In  1900  his  influence  was  given  to  the  republican 
national  ticket,  and  he  has  not  since  that  time  returned  to  the 
democratic  party,  or  announced  his  acceptance  of  democratic 
principles  as  set  forth  in  the  party  platform. 

The  resolutions  adopted  by  the  local  convention  which  nomi- 
nated him  include  an  endorsement  of  "the  fundamental  principles 
of  democracy,"  but  Mr.  Wells,  if  elected,  will  be  able  to  define 
and  construe  those  principles  to  suit  himself. 

Mr.  Wells  is  personally,  no  doubt,  a  good  man.  According 
to  the  Republic,  Mr.  Carpenter,  of  the  National  Lead  Company, 
a  republican,  gives  Mr.  Wells  a  certificate  of  good  character,  and 
Mr.  Walsh,  of  the  Terminal  Railroad  Company,  endorses  tKe 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  67 

certificate.  Even  the  Globe-Democrat  cannot  withhold  its  testi- 
mony to  his  respectability. 

It  may  be  that  the  situation  in  St.  Louis  is  such  as  to  make  it 
necessary  to  disregard  party  lines,  but  if  such  is  the  case,  the 
candidate  should  run  as  a  non-partisan  or  as  an  independent. 
Mr.  Wells  has  been  affectionately  described  by  his  friends  as 
"a  man  who  can  win/'  but  what  if  he  can  win?  It  would  not  be 
fair  to  hold  the  democratic  party  responsible  for  the  administra- 
tion of  a  man  who,  by  his  own  act,  severed  himself  from  his 
party  and  repudiated  its  principles. 

A  party  must  have  principles  as  well  as  an  organization,  and 
a  national  convention  is  the  proper  body  to  declare  those  prin- 
ciples. If,  after  a  platform  is  adopted,  any  member  cannot  con- 
fccientiously  support  that  platform,  he  has  a  perfect  right  to  leave 
the  party,  and  no  one  can  justly  criticise  his  action  if  he  is  honest 
•with  himself  and  with  his  party.  But  a  man  cannot  be  outside 
of  a  party  and  inside  at  the  same  time.  Those  who  remain  in- 
side the  party  have  rights  as  well  as  those  who  desert  it.  They 
have  a  right  to  insist  that  any  one  who  leaves  his  party  and  op- 
poses its  platform  and  candidates  shall  return  in  some  open  and 
formal  way  before  he  can  again  consider  himself  a  member.  It 
is  not  enough  that  Mr.  Wells  condescends  to  accept  a  nom- 
ination and  a  chance  of  election  to  an  important  office;  that  is 
merely  an  acceptance  of  a  benefit  from  a  party  which  he  re- 
pudiated and  spurned.  Before  he  is  entitled  to  be  called  a  demo- 
crat he  must  in  some  way  manifest  his  willingness  to  accept  the 
party  creed.  He  may  be  willing  to  have  the  party  accept  his 
principles,  but  not  willing  to  accept  the  party's  principles.  He 
may  think  it  humiliating  to  return  to  the  party,  but  is  it  not 
more  humiliating  for  the  party  to  surrender  to  him? 

The  democratic  party  showed  in  the  campaign  of  1900  that  it 
was  ready  to  welcome  any  returning  democrat,  and  it  is  doubtless 
just  as  ready  now  to  extend  a  welcome  to  those  who  opposed  the 
ticket  of  1900,  provided  they  express  a  willingness  to  accept  the 
principles  of  the  party  and  give  some  evidence  of  their  intention 
to  support  the  party's  candidates  in  the  future.  The  prodigal 
son  is  always  well  treated  when  he  sees  the  error  of  his  ways 
and  rejoins  the  family,  but  he  ought  not  to  demand  a  deed  to 
the  house  as  a  condition  precedent  to  his  return. 

The  nomination  of  Mr.  Wells  may,  in  St.  Louis,  be  attributed 


68  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

to  his  private  character  or  personal  merits,  hut  outside  of  St. 
Louis  it  is  everywhere  hailed  as  a  triumph  for  the  reactionary 
elements  of  the  part}*. 

The  Louisville  Courier- Journal  says  of  it: 

This  action  of  the  party  in  St.  Louis  (the  democratic  nomina- 
tion of  a  "gold  bug"  for  mayor)  is  evidence  that  the  process  of 
reunion  is  going  on.  It  also  shows  how  rapidly  the  silver  issue 
is  passing  from  public  view  in  such  an  extreme  democratic  state 
as  Missouri.  It  is  a  most  auspicious  indication  of  the  decline 
in  party  strife  and  the  return  of  the  masses  to  the  old  leaders 
under  whom  it  was  led  to  victory  in  former  years. 

In  the  campaign  of  1900  the  democratic  party  stood  for  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  and  for  industrial  independence  as 
well  -as  for  financial  independence,  and  the  democrats  of  St.  Louis 
gave  loyal  support  to  the  ticket.  The  republican  party  stood  for 
an  imperial  policy  and  trust  domination  as  well  as  for  the  gold 
standard,  and  Mr.  Wells  gave  his  influence  to  that  party.  The 
more  prominent  he  was  as  a  man  and  the  more  influence  he 
had,  the  more  valuable  was  his  support  to  the  republican  ticket 
and  the  greater  the  loss  to  the  democratic  cause.  If  Mr.  Wells 
has  changed  his  views,  let  him  publicly  announce  his  conversion 
to  democratic  principles  and  his  sins,  though  they  may  be  many, 
will  be  forgiven.  Of  course,  if  the  conversion  did  not  occur  until 
after  he  made'  up  his  mind  to  seek  the  nomination  for  mayor, 
some  might  doubt  the  sincerity  of  the  change,  but  so  far  he  has 
failed  to  give  even  that  much  comfort  to  the  democrats. 

If  Mr.  Wells  has  undergone  no  change  of  opinion,  what  reason 
is  there  to  doubt  that  he  will  use  the  influence  of  his  office  to 
defeat  democratic  congressmen  in  1902,  as  he  used  his  individ- 
ual influence  to  defeat  democratic  congressmen  in  1896,  1898, 
and  1900?  Is  there  any  reason  to  believe  that  the  environment 
which  led  him  out  of  the  democratic  party  has  lost  its  controlling 
influence  over  him  ?  If  he  is  the  same  man  that  he  was  in  1896, 
1898,  and  1900,  official  position  will  simply  increase  his  power  to 
do  harm  and  weaken  the  party  in  its  effort  to  overthrow  republi- 
can doctrines. 

Mr.  Wells'  nomination  is  a  part  of  the  plan  of  the  re-organ- 
izers— national  in  its  extent — to  capture  the  organization  by 
stealth  and  then  make  the  democratic  so  much  like  the  republi- 
can party  that  there  will  be  little  choice  between  them. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  69 

The  democratic  party  now  stands  for  definite  principles  and 
it  aggressively  opposes  republican  policies.  The  Kansas  City  plat- 
form embodies  the  principles  of  the  party,  and  the  rank  and  file  of 
the  party  are  attached  to  those  principles.  Those  who  oppose  the 
Kansas  City  platform  will  not  make  an  open  fight  against  it — 
even  Mr.  Wells  would  not  have  been  willing  to  risk  a  nomination 
on  a  platform  repudiating  the  Kansas  City  platform — but  under 
the  pretense  that  success  can  be  won  under  the  leadership  of  the 
re-organizers,  men  are  being  pushed  forward  for  local  offices  who 
have  no  sympathy  with  democratic  principles. 

The  election  of  1894  gave  some  indication  of  the  fate  which 
awaits  the  party  if  it  becomes  the  tool  of  organized  greed  and 
bids  only  for  the  favor  of  the  plutocratic  element  of  the  country. 
Democrats  cannot  afford  to  lose  sight  of  democratic  principles  in 
their  eagerness  to  secure  a  local  victory,  which,  when  secured,  is 
nominal  rather  than  real. 


BENJAMIN  HAKKISON. 

The  death  of  Benjamin  Harrison,  soldier,  lawyer,  orator,  states- 
man and  ex-president,  removes  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  figures 
in  American  life.  He  ran  the  gamut  of  public  office  and  every- 
where met  the  expectations  of  those  who  gave  him  their  support. 
He  served  in  the  Union  army  for  three  years  during  the  civil 
war,  beginning  as  a  second  lieutenant  and  finally  winning  the 
brevet  of  brigadier  general. 

He  was  a  lawyer  of  great  learning  and  experience,  one  of  the 
ablest  of  those  who  have  occupied  the  White  House. 

As  an  orator,  he  deserves  a  place  among  the  best  of  his  genera- 
tion. His  numerous  speeches  during  his  presidential  term  showed 
a  wide  range  of  knowledge  and  great  felicity  of  expression. 

In  the  senate  and  as  chief  executive  he  displayed  rare  quali- 
ties of  statesmanship  and  retired  from  office  universally  re- 
spected. 

He  was  a  strict  partisan  while  in  office,  but  his  uprightness  and 
official  integrity  were  always  conceded  by  his  political  opponents. 

After  his  retirement  from  the  presidency,  he  returned  to  the 
practice  of  law,  adding  to  his  professional  income  by  lectures  and 
magazine  articles. 


70  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

After  the  Spanish  war,  he  gave  expression  to  his  belief  that  the 
Filipinos  were  entitled  to .  independence,  and  insisted  that  the 
honor  of  the  nation  required  that  the  promise  made  to  Cuba  be 
kept. .  While  he  supported  the  republican  ticket  in  the  last  cam- 
paign, he  could  not  conscientiously  make  speeches  in  support  of 
the  Philippine  policy  of  the  administration,  and  after  the  election 
he  on  several  occasions  stated  his  views  with  great  force  and  clear- 
ness. 

His  reverence  for  American  principles  and  for  the  traditions 
of  the  nation  led  him  to  sympathize  with  the  Boers  in  their  un- 
equal struggle  for  liberty,  and  his  last  words  showed  that  the 
fate  of  the  South  African  Eepublic  was  a  matter  of  deep  concern 
to  him.  The  Cincinnati  Enquirer  thus  describes  his  closing 
hours : 

On  the  night  preceding  the  sudden  attack  of  illness,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Harrison  called  on  A.  L.  Mason,  and  incidentally  the  con- 
versation turned  to  questions  of  national  import,  concerning 
which  Mr.  Harrison  spoke  with  unusual  freedom.  During  his 
talk  he  particularly  laid  stress  upon  the  independence  of  Cuba, 
saying  that  America  was  pledged  to  bring  this  about.  He  also 
expressed  himself  with  reference  to  trusts,  mournfully  dropping 
the  remark,  "It  looks  as  if  force  and  greed  rule  the  world."  *  *  * 

In  his  semi-conscious  condition  when  the  sentinels  of  discre- 
tion and  propriety  had  gone  from  their  posts,  and  the  mind  of 
the  man  was  wandering,  he  began  to  speak  of  the  Boers  and  their 
hopeless  struggle  for  national  life.  His  voice  was  weak  and  trem- 
bling, his  thoughts  were  not  connected,  but  the  listeners  bending 
over  him  could  hear  words  of  pity  for  the  dying  farmer  republic. 


AN  IMPOTENT  REMEDY. 

President  Hadley,  of  Yale  College,  in  a  recent  speech  at  Bos- 
ton, renewed  a  recommendation  which  he  made  some  months 
ago  to  the  effect  that  there  should  be  a  public  opinion  which 
would  drive  the  trusts  out  of  existence  regardless  of  statutes. 
The  earlier  dispatches  quoted  him  as  saying  that  we  would  have 
an  empire  here  within  twenty-five  years  unless  something  was 
done  to  destroy  the  trusts,  but  he  has  since  denied  making  any 
such  prophecy.  The  mere  fact  that  so  prominent  an  educator 
recognizes  the  menace  of  private  monopolies  is  both  significant 
and  encouraging,  but  the  remedy  which  he  suggests  is  an  impotent 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  71 

one.  Public  opinion  is  necessary,  first,  to  enact,  and  second,  to 
enforce  law,  but  public  opinion  alone  will  never  give  the  public 
protection  from  the  trusts. 

It  would  not  be  safe  to  keep  horses  if  public  opinion  was  the 
only  protection  society  had  against  horse  stealing.  A  man  is  in- 
fluenced by  the  public  opinion  with  which  he  comes  into  contact 
and  the  horse  thief  does  not  associate  with  those  who  have  con- 
scientious scruples  against  larceny ;  neither  does  the  trust  magnate 
associate  with  those  who  object  to  trusts.  It  will  be  a  long  time 
before  the  opinion  of  an  ordinary  mortal  or,  for  that  matter, 
of  all  the  ordinary  mortals,  has  any  influence  upon  the  man  who 
can  make  a  fortune  in  a  year  by  preying  upon  those  ordinary 
mortals. 

Mr.  Rockefeller  would  be  indifferent  to  a  petition  signed  by 
ninety-nine  per  cent,  of  the  people  asking  him  to  lower  the  price 
of  oil  (even  at  the  risk  of  decreasing  his  donations  to  colleges), 
but  he  would  heed  a  law  made  and  executed  by  a  majority  of  the 
people. 

All  credit  to  President  Hadley  for  his  effort  to  create  a  public 
opinion  against  trusts,  but  that  public  opinion  must  be  crystal- 
lized into  punitive  statutes  before  it  will  check  the  trust  evil. 


$6   EEWAED. 

Ex-President  Cleveland  has  written  another  letter — this  time 
to  the  Crescent  Democratic  Club  of  Baltimore — in  which  he  gives 
expression  to  his  yearning  desire  to  have  the  democratic  party 
"return"  to  what  he  regards  as  true  democracy  and  correct  prin- 
ciples. If  this  was  his  first  utterance  of  the  kind  it  might  be 
attributed  to  a  transitory  impulse,  but  he  has  said  the  same  thing 
so  often  as  to  indicate  that  a  fixed  and  constant  longing  possesses 
him.  The  letter  reads: 

MY  DEAR  SIR. — Your  invitation  to  attend  a  meeting  of  the 
Crescent  Democratic  Club  in  celebration  of  its  twenty-ninth  an- 
niversary reaches  me  as  I  am  leaving  home  for  so  long  an  ab- 
sence, that  it  will  prevent  my  participation  in  this  interesting 
work. 

All  the  political  signs  of  the  times  indicate  most  impressively 
the  necessity  of  increased  activity  and  aggressiveness  in  the  ranks 


72  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  Democracy.  There  were  days  when  Democratic  principles,  ad- 
vocated in  Democratic  fashion,  gave  guarantee  of  Democratic  su- 
premacy— or  at  least  strength  and  influence  in  our  nation's  coun- 
sels. 

Why  should  there  not  be  a  return  of  those  days? 

The  answer  to  this  question  is  not  found  in  less  applicability 
than  formerly  of  Democratic  doctrine  to  present  conditions.  On 
the  contrary,  there  never  was  a  time  when  they  were  more  needed 
to  cure  evils  which  afflict  our  body  politic,  and  there  never  was  a 
time  when  our  countrymen  would  be  more  willing  to  accept 
Democracy  as  they  once  knew  it  as  a  safeguard  against  existing 
and  threatened  ills. 

I  am  convinced,  however,  that  if  our  party  is  to  gain  its  old 
prestige,  and  become  again  a  strong  and  vigorous  organization, 
feared  by  its  enemies  and  inspiring  the  active  devotion  of  its 
rank  and  file,  it  must  first,  of  all  things,  itself  become  truly, 
honestly  and  consistently  democratic.  Yours  very  truly, 

GROVEE  CLEVELAND. 

PRINCETON,  ¥.  J. 

His  advice  is  so  general  and  indefinite  as  to  be  utterly  useless. 
All  democrats  believe  that  democratic  principles  should  be  ap- 
plied to  present  problems,  but  as  the  Kansas  City  platform  ap- 
plies democratic  principles  to  present  problems,  why  use  the  words 
"return"  and  "old"?  Mr.  Cleveland  and  his  political  associates 
are  long  on  ambiguous  and  high  sounding  phrases,  but  short  on 
definitions;  they  are  oracular  only  in  the  sense  that  their  words 
can  be  construed  to  mean  anything  or  nothing. 

If  Mr.  Cleveland's  recent  admonition  had  been  spoken  instead 
of  written,  it  might  have  been  explained  by  a  wink  or  by  a  gesture 
suggesting  that  he  himself  was  the  embodiment  of  the  principles 
to  which  the  party  should  return,  but  when  the  words  appear  in 
cold  type  they  require  a  key. 

The  President  has  twice  referred  to  the  "rank  and  file"  re- 
cently, as  if  he  would  associate  himself  with  those  who  are  ac- 
cusea  of  separating  the  common  people  from  the  uncommon 
ones.  Since  THE  COMMONER  circulates  almost  exclusively  among 
"the  rank  and  file,"  it  seems  proper  that  this  paper  should  give  the 
distinguished  ex-Democrat  an  opportunity  to  suggest  plans  and 
specifications  for  a  democratic  structure  which  would  be  commo- 
dious enough  to  afford  a  place  of  refuge  for  him  and  at  the  same 
time  allow  standing  room  for  real  democrats. 

A  reward,  therefore,  of  five  dollars  is  offered  for  a  written 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  73 

statement,  not  to  exceed  five  hundred  words,  signed  by  Mr.  Cleve- 
land, applying  democratic  principles,  as  he  understands  them,  to 
at  least  five  of  the  questions  now  before  the  country.  The  offer 
is  open  to  him  or  to  any  one  who  can  secure  such  a  statement 
from  him.  If  the  statement  does  not  cover  five  questions,  a  pro- 
portionate reward  of  one  dollar  will  be  given  for  each  question 
covered. 

An  additional  reward  of  one  dollar  will  be  given  for  a  writ- 
ten statement,  signed  by  Mr.  Cleveland,  explaining  why  he  con- 
sidered his  opinion  on  public  questions  as  of  no  importance  during 
the  recent  campaign,  but  regards  such  opinion  as  important  now. 
When  the  battle  was  on  between  a  republic  and  an  empire — 
between  a  democracy  and  a  plutocracy — between  bimetallism  and 
monometallism — he  refused  to  say  a  word  or  lift  a  hand  in  behalf 
of  "the  rank  and  file"  for  whom  he  now  expresses  such  an  affec- 
tionate solicitude.  He  knew  that  a  republican  victory  meant  an 
endorsement  of  an  imperial  policy,  with  its  wars  of  conquest;  he 
knew  that  it  meant  trust  domination  and  the  reign  of  monopoly, 
as  well  as  a  commendation  of  a  financial  policy  never  approved 
by  a  democratic  national  convention,  and  yet  he  remained  silent. 
As  soon  as  the  election  was  over,  he  came  forth  from  his  seclusion 
and  made  the  air  vocal  with  his  suggestions. 

Assuming  to  be  inspired  by  a  purer  democracy  and  boasting  of 
a  superior  virtue,  he  began  to  offer  unsolicited  advice  to  the  party 
to  which  he  once  belonged.  He  is  like  the  soldier  who  was  de- 
scribed as  "invisible  in  war  and  invincible  in  peace."  To  de- 
sertion of  the  party  organization  and  betrayal  of  the  principles 
of  the  party,  he  adds  ostentatious  pretence  of  interest  in  the 
plain  people,  while  he  conceals  his  ideas  in  ponderous  and  plati- 
tudinous phrases.  If  he  will  clearly  and  candidly  define  the 
democratic  principles  about  which  he  is  so  prone  to  talk,  the 
people  can  decide  for  themselves  whether  he  is  the  same  Mr. 
Cleveland  who  turned  the  treasury  over  to  a  foreign  financial 
syndicate  and  intrusted  J.  Pierpont  Morgan  with  the  combina- 
tion of  the  government  vaults,  and  then  supported  the  republi- 
can ticket  because  his  administration  was  not  endorsed — the  same 
Mr.  Cleveland  who  denounced  trusts  in  his  messages  but  failed 
to  enforce  the  law  against  them — the  same  Mr.  Cleveland  who 
condemned  imperialism  and  then  gave  passive  support  to  an  Im- 
perialistic president,  or  whether  he  has  repented  of  his  folly  and 
is  ready  to  accept  the  democratic  creed. 


74  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

A  GOOD  AMENDMENT. 

Judge  Brewer,  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,  in  a  recent 
address,  called  attention  to  a  defect  in  the  jury  system,  viz.,  the 
requirement  of  a  unanimous  verdict.  While  in  criminal  cases 
the  rule  which  gives  the  prisoner  the  benefit  of  a  reasonable  doubt 
makes  it  necessary  to  preserve  the  unanimous  verdict,  there  is  no 
reason  for  adhering  to  it  in  civil  cases.  California  and  Ken- 
tucky have  already  secured  this  reform,  and  it  has  been  discussed 
in  other  states.  Under  the  present  requirement,  a  jury  often  re- 
ports to  the  judge  that  it  cannot  agree,  and  is  sent  back  with 
the  instruction  to  remain  in  the  jury  room  until  an  agreement 
is  reached.  In  such  cases  it  is  little  more  than  a  test  of  en- 
durance. The  law  should  be  amended  so  that  two-thirds  or  three- 
fourths  of  a  jury  may  render  a  verdict. 

The  New  York  World,  in  discussing  the  question,  says  that  up 
to  the  time  of  Edward  III.  the  English  jury  consisted  of  fifteen, 
eighteen  or  twenty,  and  that  twelve  were  required  to  agree  in  *a 
verdict.  The  unanimous  verdict,  it  seems,  is  an  innovation,  and 
it  has  not  been  justified  by  experience. 


THE   CANAL  TREATY. 

The  Nicaragua  canal  treaty  has  been  rejected  by  Great  Brit- 
ain. While  several  minor  reasons  are  advanced  for  the  rejection, 
Great  Britain's  refusal  to  give  sanction  to  this  agreement  is  largely 
based  on  the  amendment  similar  to  the  one  so  vigorously  urged 
by  the  late  Senator  Cushman  K.  Davis,  which  provided  that  the 
United  States  would  have  the  right  to  "defend"  the  canal,  or 
to  fortify  it  during  the  time  of  war.  This  action  disposes  of  this 
question  until  the  next  session  of  Congress,  unless,  in  the  mean- 
time, Secretary  Hay  shall  conclude  to  frame  another  proposed 
treaty  in  the  interests  of  Great  Britain. 

But  the  question  is  likely  to  be  a  full-fledged  one  at  the  next 
session  of  Congress.  Senator  Morgan,  of  Alabama,  commenting 
on  Great  Britain's  rejection  of  the  proposed  treaty,  unquestionably 
voices  the  American  sentiment  when  he  says:  "We  shall  proceed 
quietly  to  construct,  own  and  control  the  canal,  and  Great  Britain 
will  be  left  to  make  her  objections  in  such  form  as  she  may 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  75 

choose."  Senator  Morgan  refers  to  the  compact  made  between 
the  United  States  and  the  republics  of  Nicaragua  and  Costa 
Eica,  in  December,  1900.  He  points  out  that  that  compact  gave 
the  United  States  canal  rights,  and  was  made  "deliberately  and 
with  full  knowledge  that  it  was  in  diametric  opposition  to  the 
Clayton-Bulwer  treaty."  Senator  Morgan  says: 

Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  had  agreed  to  the  same' 
declarations  in  the  Hay-Pauncefote  treaty,  and,  in  conformity 
therewith,  had  agreed  to  silence  any  objections  that  might  arise 
out  of  the  Clayton-Bulwer  treaty  to  the  exclusive  ownership  and 
control  of  the  Nicaragua  canal  by  the  United  States. 

Great  Britain  did  not  urge  any  objections,  but  referred  to 
them  as  being  possible  only,  and  consented  to  remove  them.  Her 
honorable  course  at  that  time  may  not  continue  to  animate  her 
conduct  under  the  reign  of  King  Edward,  but  she  must  be  aware 
that  a  covert  threat  of  displeasure  at  our  executing  our  agree- 
ments with  Costa  Rica  and  Nicaragua  will  lose  its  moral  force 
and  its  power  to  alarm  the  United  States  into  a  fit  of  paralysis. 
Those  agreements,  upon  which  the  whole  question  of  the  canal 
now  hinges,  will  be  carried  out,  in  harmony  with  the  undivided 
sentiment  of  the  American  people. 

If  the  conclusion  that  Great  Britain  is  alleged  to  have  reached 
had  been  notified  to  the  Senate  ten  days  ago,  the  Hepburn  bill 
would  now  be  the  law  of  the  land.  All  delay  is  to  the  advantage 
of  Great  Britain  and  to  our  terrible  disadvantage,  but  she  has 
gained  another  year  on  us.  I  hope  it  will  be  the  last.  We  con- 
template no  breach  of  the  peace  or  of  good  feeling,  because  we 
shall  do,  under  our  agreement  with  Costa  Rica  and  Nicaragua, 
what  we  have  agreed  to  do,  as  those  agreements  are  in  line  with 
the  treaty  of  Constantinople,  to  which  all  Europe  assents. 

The  President  has  taken  his  stand  on  this  question  and  the 
true  American  doctrine  is  announced  in  our  agreements  with  the 
two  American  republics.  It  is  not  conceivable  that  the  President 
or  the  people  will  abandon  what  has  been  thus  established. 


COMMISSIONER  GRAY'S  PROTEST. 

The  injunction  of  secrecy  has  lately  been  removed  from  senate 
document  148  (56th  Congress,  2d  session,)  and  the  public  have 
been  permitted  to  review  the  correspondence  which  took  place 
between  the  administration  and  the  Peace  Commissioners  during 
the  negotiation  of  the  Paris  treaty.  The  report  is  so  lengthy 
that  it  cannot  be  given  in  full,  but  the  readers  of  THE  COMMONER 


76  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

can  doubtless  secure  it  from  their  senators  or  members  of  Con- 
gress. A  perusal  of  the  instructions  of  the  President  and  the 
opinions  of  the  various  commissioners  will  reveal  the  fact  that 
the  President  and  the  President  alone  was  responsible  for  the 
treaty.  Not  only  was  he  responsible  for  the  treaty,  but  he  as- 
sumed the  responsibility  with  a  full  knowledge  that  he  was  violat- 
ing American  principles  and  the  government's  promises. 

On  page  thirty-four  of  the  report  will  be  found  a  remarkable 
communication  in  the  nature  of  a  protest,  cabled  from  Paris  by 
Hon.  George  Gray,  a  member  of  the  commission.  Whether  the 
present  trend  toward  empire  and  conquest  continues  until  our 
form  of  government  is  changed,  or  whether  the  people  bestir  them- 
selves and  rescue  the  nation  from  its  perilous  course,  the  words 
of  warning  uttered  by  Mr.  Gray  merit  attention  and  commenda- 
tion. After  reading  this  communication  from  one  of  bis  own 
appointees,  the  President  could  not  excuse  himself  by  saying  that 
he  sinned  without  light. 

Mr.  Gray's  cablegram  reads  as  follows: 

(3)  The  undersigned  cannot  agree  that  it  is  wise  to  take  Philip- 
pine Islands  in  whole  or  in  part.  To  do  so  would  be  to  reverse 
accepted  continental  policy  of  the  country,  declared  and  acted 
upon  throughout  our  history.  Propinquity  governs  the  case  of 
Cuba  and  Porto  Eico.  Policy  proposed  introduces  us  into  Eu- 
ropean politics  and  the  entangling  alliances  against  which  Wash- 
ington and  all  American  statesmen  have  protested.  It  will  make 
necessary  a  navy  equal  to  the  largest  of  powers;  a  greatly  in- 
creased military  establishment;  immense  sums  for  fortification 
and  harbors:  multiply  occasions  for  dangerous  complications  with 
foreign  nations,  and  increase  burdens  with  taxation.  Will  receive 
in  compensation  no  outlet  for  American  labor  in  labor  market 
already  overcrowded  and  cheap;  no  area  for  homes  for  American 
citizens;  climate  and  social  condition  demoralizing  to  character 
of  American  youth;  new  and  disturbing  questions  introduced  into 
our  politics;  church  question  menacing.  On  whole,  instead  of 
indemnity — injury. 

The  undersigned  cannot  agree  that  any  obligation  incurred  to 
insurgents  is  paramount  to  our  own  manifest  interests.  Attacked 
Manila  as  part  of  legitimate  war  against  Spain.  If  we  had 
captured  Cadiz  and  Carlists  had  helped  us,  would  not  owe  duty 
to  stay  by  them  at  the  conclusion  of  war.  On  the  contrary,  in- 
terests and  duty  would  require  us  to  abandon  both  Manila  and 
Cadiz.  No  place  for  colonial  administration  or  government  of 
subject  people  in  American  system.  So  much  from  standpoint 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  77 

of  interest;  but  even  conceding  all  benefits  claimed  for  annexa- 
tion, we  thereby  abandon  the  infinitely  greater  benefit  to  accrue 
from  acting  the  part  of  a  great,  powerful,  Christian  nation;  we 
exchange  the  moral  grandeur  and  strength  to  be  gained  by  keep- 
ing our  word  to  nations  of  the  world  and  by  exhibiting  a  mag- 
nanimity and  moderation  in  the  hour  of  victory  that  becomes  the 
advanced  civilization  we  claim,  for  -doubtful  material  advantages 
and  shameful  stepping  down  from  high  moral  position  boast- 
fully assumed.  We  should  set  example  in  these  respects,  not 
follow  in  the  selfish  and  vulgar  greed  for  territory  which  Europe 
has  inherited  from  medieval  times.  Our  declaration  of  war  upon 
Spain  was  accompanied  by  a  solemn  and  deliberate  definition  of 
our  purpose.  Now  that  we  have  achieved  all  and  more  than  our 
object,  let  us  simply  keep  our  word.  Third  article  of  the  proto- 
col leaves  everything  concerning  the  control  of  the  Philippine 
Islands  to  negotiation  between  the  parties. 

It  is  now  absurd  to  say  that  we  will  not  negotiate  but  will 
appropriate  the  whole  subject-matter  of  negotiation.  At  the  very 
least  let  us  adhere  to  the  President's  instructions  and  if  condi- 
tions require  the  keeping  of  Luzon  forego  the  material  advan- 
tages claimed  in  annexing  other  islands.  Above  all  let  us  not 
make  a  mockery  of  the  injunction  contained  in  those  instruc- 
tions, where,  after  stating  that  we  took  up  arms  only  in  obedience 
to  the  dictates  of  humanity  and  in  the  fulfillment  of  high  public 
and  moral  obligations,  and  that  we  had  no  design  of  aggrandize- 
ment and  no  ambition  of  conquest,  the  President  among  other 
things  eloquently  says: 

"It  is  my  earnest  wish  that  the  United  States  in  making  peace 
should  follow  the  same  high  rule  of  conduct  which  guided  it  in 
facing  war.  It  should  be  as  scrupulous  and  magnanimous  in 
the  concluding  settlement  as  it  was  just  and  humane  in  its  origi- 
nal action." 

This  and  more,  of  which  I  earnestly  ask  a  re-perusal,  binds  my 
conscience  and  governs  my  action. 
Wednesday,  12 :30,  night.  GEORGE  GKAT. 


AMENDMENT  BY  CONVENTION. 

Article  V  of  the  Federal  Constitution  provides:  "The  Congress, 
whenever  two-thirds  of  both  houses  shall  deem  it  necessary,  shall 
propose  amendments  to  this  Constitution,  or,  on  the  application  of 
the  legislatures  of  two-thirds  of  the  several  states,  shall  call  a  con- 
vention for  proposing  amendments  which,  in  either  case,  shall 
be  valid  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  as  part  of  this  Constitution, 
when  ratified  by  the  legislatures  of  three-fourths  of  the  several 


78  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

states,  or  by  conventions  in  three-fourths  thereof,  as  one  or  the 
other  mode  of  ratification  may  be  proposed  by  Congress." 

The  above  mentioned  provision  makes  it  possible  for  the  states 
to  take  the  initiative  in  securing  an  amendment  to  the  Constitu- 
tion and  is  another  illustration  of  the  foresight  of  the  early  states- 
men. For  nearly  ten  years  the  people  have  been  trying  to  secure 
an  amendment  providing  for  the  election  of  senators  by  a  direct 
vote  of  the  people.  In  the  Fifty-second,  Fifty-third,  and  Fifty- 
sixth  Congresses  the  necessary  resolution  passed  the  House  of 
Representatives  but  died  in  the  Senate. 

Not  only  did  the  resolution  pass  the  House,  but  it  passed  each 
time  by  more  than  two-thirds  vote. 

Among  the  people  there  is  practically  no  opposition  to  this 
reform,  but  the  senate  deliberately  refuses  to  permit  this  change 
and  defies  public  sentiment.  The  time  has  come  for  securing 
the  amendment  in  spite  of  the  senate's  opposition.  The  voters, 
irrespective  of  party,  should  demand  of  the  state  legislatures  such 
action  as  will  result  in  compelling  Congress  to  call  a  convention. 
When  two-thirds  of  the  states  present  their  demand  in  a  formal 
manner,  the  senate  will  yield  and  the  victory  will  be  complete. 
Now  is  the  time  for  action.  When  United  .  States  senators  are 
elected  by  the  people,  and  therefore,  directly  responsible  to  them, 
it  will  be  easier  to  secure  any  reform  which  the  people  desire. 


THE  PRESIDENT'S  GROWING  POWERS. 

A  writer  in  the  Forum,  discussing  the  growing  power  of  the 
President,  shows  that  aside  from  the  offices  in  War  and  Navy  de- 
partments, the  President  has  patronage  at  his  disposal  as  follows: 

State  Department — 
318  Consular  and  Diplomatic  appointments $1,000,000 

Treasury  Department — 
743  Customs,  Revenue,  Marine  hospital,  etc 617,355 

Post-Office  Department — 
4,015  Postmasters  6,931,000 

Interior  Department — 
747  Pension  officials,  land-office  agents,  etc 1,997,640 

Department  of  Justice — • 
Judges,  attorneys,  marshals,  etc 1,126,000 


Total : $11,671,995 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  79 

It  is  estimated  that,  including  all  departments,  the  President 
is,  as  the  Chicago  Times-Herald  says,  "able  to  divert  into  the  pock- 
ets of  his  supporters  annually  the  sum  of  $20,000,000,  a  total 
distribution  of  $80,000,000,  during  his  term  of  office."  The  Times- 
Herald  declares  that  "there  is  much  apprehension  among  the  stu- 
dents of  our  political  system  concerning  these  growing  powers  of 
the  President/'  This  republican  newspaper  says: 

In  adjusting  some  of  the  problems  growing  out  of  the  recent 
war  we  have  seen  Congress  practically  abdicate  in  favor  of  the 
President.  The  framers  of  the  Constitution  rightly  appreciated 
that  in  a  republic  the  popular  branch  of  the  government  must  be 
paramount.  We  have  recently  seen  the  President  become  the 
autocratic  ruler  of  hundreds  of  thousands  of  people  in  Cuba  and 
of  millions  of  people  in  the  Philippines.  He  has  appointed  and 
removed  officials  without  asking  the  consent  of  the  Senate.  The 
laws  promulgated  by  the  Taf  t  Commission  in  the  Philippines  de- 
clare that  they  were  enacted  "by  the  authority  of  the  President  of 
the  United  States" — not  of  Congress. 

And  then  the  Times-Herald  concludes  that  "the  only  remedy 
appears  to  be  through  the  extension  and  enforcement  of  the  merit 
system."  This  is,  indeed,  a  profound  suggestion.  A  more  sensible 
one,  however,  would  be  that  we  restore  the  machinery  of  our  na- 
tional government  to  its  proper  order;  that  the  law-making  and 
war-declaring  power  be  exercised  exclusively  by  the  congress ;  that 
•the  President  resume  his  constitutional  place  as  an  executive,  con- 
tent with  being  the  beloved  magistrate  of  a  nation  of  freemen, 
rather  than  the  autocratic  ruler  of  peoples  who  have  never  consented 
to  United  States  government. 


POLITICS  IN  MEXICO. 

Those  who  have  watched  the  progress  of  Mexico  during  the 
last  twenty-five  years  will  earnestly  hope  for  the  recovery  of  Presi- 
dent Diaz,  about  whose  sickness  such  contradictory  reports  have 
been  circulated.  He  has  shown  wonderful  executive  ability  and 
under  his  administration  great  improvement  has  been  noticeable 
in  every  direction.  Education  has  become  more  general  among 
the  people;  the  army  has  been  largely  reduced— the  number  of 
commissioned  officers  as  well  as  the  number  of  privates;  business 


8o  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

has  prospered;  human  life  and  property  rights  have  been  made 
more  secure,  and  the  nation  has  constantly  advanced  in  the  opinion 
of  the  outside  world.  The  Americans  residing  in  Mexico  have 
found  in  the  president  a  just  and  faithful  friend,  and  his  death 
would  cause  universal  sorrow. 

There  is,  however,  no  reason  to  predict,  as  some  have  done,  dis- 
order or  revolution  in  case  of  his  demise.  Mexico  has  many  able 
men.  They  are  not  well  known  abroad  because  the  extraordinary 
merit  of  Diaz  has  overshadowed  them,  but  they  are  men  of  educa- 
tion and  executive  experience. 

General  Eeyes,  who  is  often  mentioned  as  "the  next  president," 
was  for  some  time  governor  of  Nuevo  Leon,  one  of  the  larger 
states  of  the  republic,  and  is  now  a  member  of  the  cabinet.  At 
Monterey,  the  capital  of  his  state,  there  is  a  considerable  colony 
of  Americans,  and  General  Reyes  speaks  our  language  fluently. 
He  is  a  man  of  extended  learning,  courage  and  capacity. 

Mr.  Limenteur,  the  present  secretary  of  finance,  has  also  been 
mentioned  as  a  possible  successor  to  Diaz.  He  is  of  French  de- 
scent and  speaks  that  language  in  addition  to  Spanish  and  English. 
His  management  of  the  nation's  finances  has  been  very  satisfactory 
and  he  is  quite  popular. 

Whether  the  neighbor  to  the  south  of  us  is  fortunate  enough  to 
retain  the  services  of  the  present  chief  executive  or  is,  by  his 
death  compelled  to  choose  a  new  president,  there  is  every  reason 
to  believe  that  she  has  reached  a  point  where  she  can  count  upon 
an  indefinite  continuation  of  her  present  period  of  development. 

The  Republic  of  Mexico  is  closely  bound  to  us  by  political  in- 
terests as  well  as  by  location,  and  her  welfare  must  always  be  a 
matter  of  deep  concern  to  our  people. 


ON  DANGEROUS  GROUND. 

Hon.  David  B.  Hill,  like  ex-President  Cleveland,  was  invited 
to  the  dinner  given  a  short  time  ago  by  the  Crescent  Democratic 
Club  of  Baltimore,  and  like  Mr.  Cleveland  he  sent  his  regrets. 
The  letter  which  he  wrote  for  that  occasion  contains  several  sen- 
tences which  indicate  that  Mr.  Hill  is  on  dangerous  ground.  He 
seems  to  confess  the  criticisms  made  against  the  democratic  party 
by  the  republicans  and  by  the  democrats  who  opposed  the  ticket. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  81 

He  says  "Labor  and  capital  should  be  equally  respected,  but 
neither  should  be  unnecessarily  assailed."  The  democratic  party 
has  never  been  accused  of  assailing  labor,  but  it  is  a  favorite 
pastime  with  the  republicans  to  accuse  it  of  assailing  capital.  The 
democratic  party "  distinguishes  between  legitimate  accumulations 
and  predatory  wealth,  but  whenever  predatory  wealth  is  attacked 
it  tries  to  shield  itself  behind  honest  capital. 

Mr.  Hill  says  "Opposition  to  dangerous  corporate  combinations 
should  not  be  allowed  to  degenerate  into  indiscriminate  attacks 
upon  chartered  rights."  That  is  almost  identical  with  the  lan- 
guage used  by  the  republicans  in  defending  the  trusts.  They  are 
always  careful  to  assure  the  public  that  they  condemn  "hurtful," 
"injurious"  and  "dangerous"  combinations,  but  they  are  solicitious 
about  vested  rights  and  are  fearful  lest  the  attacks  may  be  "in- 
discriminate." The  language  used  by  Mr.  Hill  is  generally  em- 
ployed by  those  who  have  no  remedy  to  propose  for  the  trusts, 
but  oppose  any  remedy  suggested. 

But  he  gets  even  nearer  to  the  republican  line,  if  possible,  when 
he  says,  "The  people  want  a  safe  and  conservative  administration 
of  public  affairs."  That  is  just  exactly  what  the  republicans  al- 
ways promise.  "Safe  and  conservative" — everybody  wants  a  safe 
administration  and  conservatism  is  an  almost  universal  trait.  But 
the  republicans  prate  so  much  about  "safety"  and  "conservatism" 
that  a  democrat  ought  not  to  use  the  terms  without  explaining 
what  he  means  by  them.  An  administration  that  would  be  "safe" 
for  the  monopolies  would  not  be  satisfactory  to  those  who  are  the 
victims  of  every  private  monopoly,  and  an  administration  so  con- 
servative that  it  would  not  undo  anything  that  the  republican 
party  has  done  would  be  no  better  than  a  republican  administra- 
tion. 

Mr.  Hill  adds :  "There  must  be  no  question  of  our  intention  to 
fearlessly  maintain  the  national  credit  under  any  and  all  circum- 
stances." As  the  democratic  party  has  never  attacked  the  na- 
tional credit  that  advice  is  gratuitous  unless  Mr.  Hill  means  to 
condemn  the  Chicago  and  Kansas  City  platforms;  and  if  such 
is  his  intention,  he  ought  to  make  the  attack  openly  and  boldly. 

In  another  part  of  the  letter  he  says,  "We  should  conciliate  rather 
than  antagonize  the  great  business  interests  of  the  country."  How 
is  this  conciliation  to  be  accomplished?  The  policies  advocated 
by  the  democratic  party  are  as  good  for  the  ordinary  business  man 


8s  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

as  they  are  for  the  laboring  man  or  the  farmer,  but  the  great 
railroad  interests  are  opposed  to  the  democratic  party  because 
the  party  opposes  extortionate  rates,  rebates  and  discriminations; 
because  it  opposes  watered  stock  and  fictitious  capitalization.  It 
cannot  conciliate  these  interests  without  abandoning  the  people 
generally.  The  great  banking  interests  of  the  country  are  against 
the  democratic  party  because  the  democratic  party  is  not  willing 
to  turn  seventy-five  millions  of  people  over  to  the  tender  mercies 
of  a  few  financiers.  It  cannot  conciliate  these  interests  and  at 
the  same  time  protect  the  rights  of  the  wealth  producer.  The 
great  manufacturing  interests  want  a  protective  taiiff  and  the 
great  trust  interests  want  to  be  let  alone.  Mr.  Hill  says  that 
the  great  business  interests  can  easily  be  conciliated  "without 
the  surrender  of  a  single  essential  party  principle."  It  is  to  be 
hoped  that  he  will  at  an  early  day  give  the  party  the  benefit  of 
his  definition  of  "essential"  party  principles. 

Mr.  Wells  of  St.  Louis  was  nominated  for  mayor  to  please  the 
'^business  interests" — they  would  not  be  satisfied  with  a  candidate 
who  had  voted  the  democratic  ticket  or  who  ,was  willing  to  admit 
that  he  believed  in  democratic  principles.  Shall  we  teach  them 
democratic  principles  or  at  their  demand  abandon  democratic  prin- 
ciples ? 

Mr.  Hill  is  so  skillful  in  the  use  of  words  that  he  should  have  no 
difficulty  in  making  his  meaning  plain.  It  is  not  necessary  for 
him  to  borrow  republican  phraseology.  He  owes  it  to  the  party 
to  give  expression  to  his  views  in  clear  and  unambiguous  language. 
If  he  joins  with  Mr.  Cleveland,  Mr.  Whitney  et  al.  in  their  effort 
to  republicanize  the  democratic  party  he  will  be  a  tower  of  strength 
to  their  side.  If  he  intends  to  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  six  millions 
and  more  who  kept  the  faith  in  1896  and  1900  he  should  avoid  the 
verbiage  that  republicans  and  gold  democrats  have  employed  to 
conceal  their  sinister  purposes. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  83 


V. 
HARRISON'S  LAST  WORDS. 

The  March  number  of  the  North  American  Review  contains  an 
article  from  the  pen  of  the  late  Benjamin  Harrison.  Having  been 
written  so  shortly  before  his  death,  and  dealing  with  public  ques- 
tions of  the  first  importance,  this  article  will  probably  be  remem- 
bered as  his  last  public  utterance.  It  is  fortunate  for  his  memory 
and  for  the  country  that  it  presents  sentiments  so  truly  American 
and  so  thoroughly  consistent  with  international  morality,  as  well 
as  with  our  nation's  traditions.  The  following  extract  presents 
a  glimpse  of  his  argument,  but  it  deserves  perusal  entire. 

Mr.  James  Brice  recently  said : 

"Indeed  the  struggles  for  liberty  and  nationality  are  almost 
beginning  to  be  forgotten  by  the  new  generation,  which  has  no 
such  enthusiasm  for  these  principles  as  men  had  forty  years  ago." 

And  the  moment  when  two  republics  are  in  articulo  mortis,  some 
of  our  journals  congratulate  us  over  the  prospect  of  an  increased 
trade  with  the  "Crown  Colonies"  that  are  to  be  set  up  in  their 
stead  and  over  the  increased  output  of  the  Johannesburg  mines. 
The  emperor  of  Germany  is  reported  to  have  forestalled  President 
Kruger's  personal  appeal  by  the  statement  that  Germany's  in- 
terests would  be  promoted  by  the  British  conquest  of  the  republics. 
And  Bishop  Thoburn  asks:  "Why  should  people  lament  the  ab- 
sorption of  the  small  powers  by  the  large  ones  ?" 

Never  before  has  American  sympathy  failed,  or  been  divided, 
or  failed  to  find  its  voice,  when  a  people  were  fighting  for  in- 
dependence. Can  we  now  calculate  commercial  gains  before  the 
breath  of  a  dying  republic  has  quite  failed  or  the  body  has  quite 
taken  on  the  rigor  mortis?  If  international  justice,  government 
by  the  people,  the  party  of  the  nations,  have  ceased  to  be  workable 
things  and  have  become  impracticable,  shall  we  part  with  them 
with  a  sneer  or  simulate  regret,  even  if  we  have  lost  the  power 
to  feel  it?  May  not  one  be  allowed  to  contemplate  the  heavens 
with  suppressed  aspirations,  though  there  are  no  "consumers" 
there?  Do  we  need  to  make  a  mock  of  the  stars  because  we  can- 
not appropriate  them — because  they  do  not  take  our  produce? 

Have  we  deceived  ourselves? 

********* 

There  was  plainly  no  call  for  an  armed  intervention  by  the 


84  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Fnited  States  in  South  Africa,  and  perhaps  our  diplomatic  sug- 
gestions went  as  far  as  usage  would  justify.  But  has  not  public 
opinion  here  been  somehow  strongly  perverted  or  put  under  some 
unwonted  repression?  If  we  have  lost  either  the  right  to  de- 
nounce aggression  or  the  capacity  to  weep  when  a  republic  dies 
it  is  a  grievous  loss. 


JUSTICE  TO  THE  POPULISTS. 

The  populist  party,  ridiculed  by  the  republicans  and  denounced 
by  the  gold  democrats,  has  really  been  a  great  educator.  It  is  an 
historical  fact  that  many  political  organizations  have  been  influen- 
tial in  moulding  public  opinion,  even  though  they  have  never  se- 
cured control  of  the  federal  government.  The  populists  have  never 
had  at  any  time  more  than  a  score  of  members  of  Congress,  and 
yet  they  have  given  an  impetus  to  several  reforms  which  must  ulti- 
mately be  accomplished. 

For  years  the  democrats  preached  tariff  reform  in  states  like  Kan- 
sas, Nebraska,  Colorado  and  the  Dakotas,  but  they  seemed  to  make 
little  progress  because  republican  prejudice  was  a  barrier  to  demo- 
cratic doctrines.  The  populists  did  not  denounce  a  protective 
tariff  in  their  platform,  but  in  attacking  the  republican  party  they 
weakened  the  protective  sentiment  among  their  members  and  to-day 
tariff  reform  is  much  stronger  in  the  west  than  it  would  have  been 
without  the  assistance  of  populism.  The  Wilson  Bill,  the  only 
tariff  reform  measure  enacted  since  the  war,  could  not  have  passed 
without  the  aid  of  populist  votes  in  the  senate. 

The  first  national  platform  written  by  the  populists  demanded 
the  election  of  United  States  senators  by  a  direct  vote  of  the  people. 
That  was  before  the  matter  received  serious  attention  in  Congress, 
but  since  then  the  House  of  Representatives  has  three  times  adopted 
a  resolution  proposing  the  necessary  amendment.  In  1900  the 
democratic  platform  endorsed  this  reform  and  it  is  now  receiving 
the  support  of  many  prominent  papers  which  until  recently  have 
been  silent  upon  the  subject  or  opposed  to  the  change. 

The  populist  party  is  an  advocate  of  the  system  known  as  the 
initiative  and  referendum,  whereby  the  people  can  compel  the  sub- 
mission of  important  questions  and  pass  upon  the  acts  of  legisla- 
tures. This  reform  has  been  endorsed  by  many  democratic  state 
conventions  and  was  last  year  approved  by  the  national  convention 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  85 

of  the  party.  South  Dakota,  at  the  1898  election,  adopted  an 
amendment  providing  for  the  initiative  and  referendum,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  that  the  republicans  carried  the  state  by  a  considerable 
majority.  Even  more  recently,  a  republican  legislature  in  Oregon 
has  given  its  endorsement  to  direct  legislation. 

The  republican  governor  of  Wisconsin  is  urging  the  adoption  of 
a  system  abolishing  political  conventions  and  providing  for  party 
nominations  by  a  direct  vote  of  the  people — a  system  entirely  in 
keeping  with  the  contentions  of  the  populist  party. 

Prior  to  the  organization  of  the  populist  party,  comparatively 
few  men  advocated  the  municipal  ownership  of  public  utilities, 
and  yet  to-day  business  men  in  every  part  of  the  United  States  are 
openly  defending  this  policy.  Whenever  the  question  has  been 
submitted  to  the  voters  a  large  majority  has  generally  been  polled 
in  favor  of  this  reform,  once  denounced  as  popuiistic  but  now  re- 
garded as  prudent  business  policy  for  a  community. 

The  populists  favor  a  postal  telegraph  system  operated  in  con- 
nection with  the  post-office  department;  this  reform  has  already 
been  recommended  by  one  republican  postmaster  general,  Mr. 
Wanamaker,  and  the  matter  is  now  being  investigated  by  an  in- 
dustrial commission. 

The  populists,  while  holding  to  their  belief  in  the  government 
ownership  of  railroads,  have  given  their  influence  to  all  legislation 
which  tended  toward  the  regulation  of  railroads  or  the  securing  of 
reasonable  rates. 

On  the  money,  question  the  populist  party  has  done  a  great  deal 
of  educational  work.  It  has  steadfastly  defended  the  greenback 
against  the  attacks  of  the  national  banking  interests  and  has  in- 
sisted that  the  right  to  issue  money  is  a  sovereign  function  of  gov- 
ernment which  cannot  safely  be  delegated  to  private  individuals  or 
corporations.  The  democratic  party  has  in  two  conventions  sup- 
ported this  doctrine,  although  differing  from  the  populists  on  the 
subject  of  redeemability.  The  democrats  advocate  a  legal  tender 
greenback,  issued  by  the  government,  redeemable  in  coin,  the  gov- 
ernment to  exercise  the  option  as  to  which  coin,  while  the  populists 
believe  in  an  irredeemable  greenback.  This  difference,  however, 
has  not  prevented  the  democrats  and  populists  from  acting  together 
to  save  the  greenback  from  annihilation. 

The  populists  believe  in  the  quantitative  theory  of  money  and 
favor  bimetallism  because  it  would  give  more  money  than  mono- 


86  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

metallism.  While  the  democrats  in  the  Senate  and  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives had  for  twenty  years  been  voting  for  free  coinage  at 
sixteen  to  one,  the  populists  were  the  first  to  name  the  ratio  in  a 
national  platform.  The  unexpected  and  unpromised  increase  in 
the  supply  of  gold,  while  it  has  tended  to  lessen  the  immediate  im- 
portance of  the  money  question,  has  vindicated  the  quantitative 
theory  which  is  advocated  by  democrats  and  populists  but  was  until 
recently  denied  by  republicans. 

The  populists,  as  might  be  expected,  oppose  imperialism  and 
trusts.  They  also  unite  with  the  democrats  in  favoring  arbitra- 
tion and  condemning  government  by  injunction  and  the  black- 
list. 

No  one  who  understands  the  history  of  the  last  ten  years  can 
doubt  the  influence  which  the  populist  party  has  exerted  upon 
public  affairs.  It  has  been  a  great  educational  factor  and  the 
democratic  party  has  strengthened  rather  than  weakened  itself 
by  endorsing  a  number  of  propositions  which  are  called  "popu- 
listic."  To  repudiate  our  populist  allies  and  surrender  to  the 
corporate  influences  which  now  dominate  the  republican  party 
would  be  as  impolitic  as  it  would  be  unpatriotic.  The  demo- 
cratic party  has  no  reason  for  existence  except  to  champion  the 
cause  of  the  people.  It  must  stand  ready  to  co-operate  with  those 
who  are  fighting  organized  greed,  for  to  refuse  such  co-operation 
is  to  give  aid  and  comfort  to  the  common  enemy. 


JACKSON  VS.  IMPERIALISM. 

Congressman  Gaines,  of  Tennessee,  who  represents  the  Hermit- 
age district,  has  had  printed  in  the  Congressional  Record  a  letter 
in  which  he  presents  evidence  to  show  that  Jackson  was  not  an 
imperialist.  The  quotations  given  by  Mr.  Gaines  prove  that  the 
hero  of  New  Orleans  specifically  repudiated  the  doctrines  which 
the  republicans  now  advocate.  The  following  is  taken  from  the 
letter: 

To  the  Editor  of  the  American: 

The  republican  speakers  throughout  the  country,  by  way  of 
justification  of  the  injustice  done  the  Porto  Ricans,  say  that  the 
laws  recentlv  passed  to  govern  Porto  Rico  are  exactly  alike  or 
similar  to  the  laws  passed  in  1821  by  Congress  for  the  govern- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  87 

ment  of  Florida  until  "the  first  session  of  the  next  Congress,'' 
and  that  Andrew  Jackson,  as  governor  of  Florida,  enforced  these 
la-ys.  I  deny  that  the  laws  are  even  remotely  identical,  but  even 
if  it  were  true,  we  nevertheless  find  Andrew  Jackson  refusing  to 
enforce  the  Florida  statute  except  for  a  few  months  (June  to 
October),  and  after  setting  up  the  government  under  this  law 
as  best  he  could,  he  resigned  and  returned  home  (in  October,  1821), 
and  in  severe  and  unmistakable  language  condemned  the  law.  Here 
are  his  words : 

"I  am  clothed  with  powers  which  no  one  in  a  republic  ought  to 
possess,  and  which,  I  trust,  will  never  be  again  given  to  any  man. 
Nothing  will  give  more  happiness  than  to  learn  that  Congress 
in  its  wisdom  shall  have  distributed  them  properly  and  in  such  a 
manner  as  is  consonant  to  our  earliest  and  deepest  convictions." 
(Frost's  History  of  Jackson,  and  Monument  to  Jackson.) 

At  another  time  he  said :  "I  hope  that  no  living  man  shall  ever 
in  the  future  be  clothed  with  such  extraordinary  authority." 
(State  Papers,  p.  100,  Seventeenth  Congress.) 

How  can  any  one  conceive  of  language  more  severely  condemna- 
tory of  the  unrepublican  law  that  conferred  such  imperial  power. 
The  Statesman's  Manual,  volume  1,  says:  "Jackson  took  posses- 
sion of  Florida  in  August,  1821,  and  remained  but  a  few  months, 
for,  disliking  the  situation  and  disapproving  the  extent  of  power 
invested  in  him  as  governor,  he  resigned  the  office  and  again 
retired  to  Tennessee." 

What  Jackson  then  condemned,  McKinley  now  endorses.  He 
condemned  both  the  policy  and  the  law  under  which  he  acted, 
even  although  it  was  a  temporary  law  and  a  temporary  policy, 
and  the  people  made  him  President  and  continue  to  honor  his 
memory.  McKinley  now  upholds  this  policy  and  law,  and  de- 
mands that  we  make  both  the  policy  and  law  permanent  for  the 
control  of  our  new  imperial  possessions,  because  he  has  determined 
to  hold  them  permanently,  thus  making  this  policy  and  law  nec- 
essarily continuous,  since  he  does  not  propose  to  make  them  into 
states  nor  the  inhabitants  into  citizens  of  the  United  States,  nor 
to  acknowledge  that  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  applies 
to  them,  but  must  go  there,  if  at  all,  "by  statute  as  a  statute," 
repealable  at  any  time.  And  yet  he  asks  the  American  people 
to  uphold  what  Jackson  condemned  and  declined  to  uphold,  and 
for  that  reason  make  him  again  President,  and  thus  make  him 
and  his  successors,  if  he  ever  has  any,  the  imperial  rulers  of 
11,000,000  inhabitants  who  can  claim  no  rights  nor  benefits  under 
the  Constitution. 

The  Florida  territory  contained  about  10,000  inhabitants,  white 
and  black,  and  our  treaty  acquiring  them  made  them  citizens,  if 
they  so  elected,  gave  the  immediate  right  of  future  statehood  and 
the  protection  of  the  Constitution,  now  no  longer  doubted  to 
apply  to  the  territories,  as  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 


88  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

States  has  held  in  many  opinions,  while  the  President  and  his 
party  propose  to  hold  them  indefinitely,  and  perhaps  perpetually, 
outside  the  protection  of  the  Constitution,  without  ever  intending 
to  make  states  of  the  territory  or  citizens  of  the  people. 

A  few  days  before  he  resigned  and  came  home  from  Florida, 
General  Jackson,  in  a  public  letter  addressed,  not  to  serfs,  colonists 
or  dependents,  hut  "to  the  citizens  of  Florida,"  said: 

"They  (the  secretaries  of  east  and  west  Florida)  are  charged 
faithfully  to  protect  and  maintain  all  the  citizens  and  inhabitants 
of  whatsoever  description,  in  the  said  provinces  in  the  peaceful 
enjoyment  of  their  rights,  privileges  and  immunities  secured  to 
them  under  the  treaty  with  Spain  and  under  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States,  so  far  as  the  same  is  applicable." 

The  republicans  say  that  the  Constitution  does  not  extend  to 
our  new  possessions,  but  only  to  the  states,  thus  threatening 
Arizona,  New  Mexico,  and  Oklahoma  with  imperialism;  whereas 
Jackson  held  that  the  Constitution  applied  to  the  territories,  and 
that,  too,  at  an  early  day,  when  the  courts  had  not  fully  construed 
or  settled  that  question,  now  declared  no  longer  to  be  an  "open 
question"  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  composed 
of  both  republicans  and  democrats. 


"CONQUEST/'  SAID  THE  PRESIDENT. 

In  the  correspondence  concerning  the  Paris  treaty,  referred  to 
in  a  former  issue,  will  be  found  some  interesting  telegrams  which 
passed  between  the  commission  and  the  state  department  discuss- 
ing the  theory  to  be  advanced  for  the  holding  of  the  Philippine 
Islands.  Mr.  Day,  speaking  for  a  majority  of  the  members  of 
the  commission,  cabled  the  President  on  November  3,  1898,  say- 
ing that  the  demand  for  the  Philippine  Islands  could  not  be  based 
on  conquest.  The  following  is  the  message : 

UNITED  STATES  PEACE  COMMISSION,  PARIS,  November  3,  1898 — 

10  a.  m.     (For  the  President. — Special.) 

After  a  careful  examination  of  the  authorities,  the  majority  of 
the  commission  are  clearly  of  opinion  that  our  demand  for  the 
Philippine  Islands  cannot  be  based  on  conquest.  When  the  proto- 
col was  signed  Manila  was  not  captured,  siege  was  in  progress 
and  capture  made  after  the  execution  of  the  protocol.  Captures 
made  after  agreement  for  armistice  must  be  disregarded  and  status 
ono  restored  as  far  as  practicable.  We  can  require  cession  of 
Philippine  Islands  only  as  indemnity  for  losses  and  expenses  of 
the  war.  Have  in  view,  also,  condition  of  islands,  the  broken 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  89 

power  of  Spain,  anarchy  in  which  our  withdrawal  would  leave 
the  islands,  etc.  These  are  legitimate  factors.  Have  written  fully. 
Thursday,  11:30  morning.  DAY< 

Secretary  of  State  Hay  immediately  replied: 

DEPARTMENT  OF  STATE,  WASHINGTON,  November  3,  1898. 
The  President  has  received  your  dispatch  of  this  date  and 
awaits  your  letter.  Meantime,  however,  the  question  may  be  ulti- 
mately determined.  He  assumes  you  have  not  yielded  the  claim 
by  right  of  conquest.  In  fact,  the  destruction  of  the  Spanish 
fleet  on  May  1  was  the  conquest  of  Manila,  the  capital  of  the 
Philippines.  The  President  is  confident  that  the  commission  will 
be  able  to  make  a  treaty  on  just  and  honorable  grounds;  a  failure 
to  do  so  would  be  greatly  to  be  regretted.  HAY. 

On  the  following  day  Mr.  Day  renewed  his  protest  and  Com- 
missioner Davis  added  a  separate  opinion  in  support  of  Mr.  Day's 
communication.  They  read  as  follows: 

PARIS,  November  5,  1898 — 2 :20. 
(For  the  President. — Special.) 

Telegram  of  November  3  from  the  Secretary  of  State  received. 
We  have  not  yielded  the  claim  by  a  right  of  conquest.  Telegram 
to  you  on  that  subject  was  on  the  afternoon  of  discussion  with 
Spanish  commissioners.  We  shall  not  foreclose  important  mat- 
ters without  advising  you.  We  are  doing  all  in  our  power  to  secure 
treaty  in  accordance  with  your  views.  In  the  opinion  of  a  ma- 
jority of  the  commission  we  shall  not  promote  this  end  by  putting 
forth  the  claim  that  Manila  was  taken  by  conquest  on  May  1. 
Subsequent  military  operations  and  capitulation,  no  less  than 
mutual  acceptance  of  protocol,  preclude  making  demand  upon  that 
ground.  Our  opinion  as  to  ineffectiveness  of  capitulation  after 
protocol  has  already  been  stated.  DAY. 

I  think  we  can  demand  cession  of  entire  archipelago  on  other 
and  more  valid  grounds  than  a  perfected  territorial  conquest  of 
the  Philippine  Islands,  such  as  indemnity  or  as  conditions  of  peace 
imposed  by  our  general  military  success  and  in  view  of  our  future 
security  and  general  welfare,  commercial  and  otherwise.  I  think 
the  protocol  admits  all  these  grounds,  and  that  the  ground  alone 
of  perfected  territorial  conquest  of  the  Philippine  Islands  is  too 
narrow  and  untenable  under  protocol.  Friday,  3  :30  afternoon. 

CUSHMAN  K.  DAVIS. 

The  President,  in  his  reply,  again  insisted  that  the  commission 
should  rely,  in  part,  upon  our  right  to  hold  the  islands  by  con- 


go  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

quest.  It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  the  President  deliberately 
and  after  repeated  warnings  clung  to  the  doctrine  that  conquest 
can  give  title  to  lands  and  peoples. 

Jefferson,  in  1791,  said,  in  a  letter  to  William  Short,  "If  there 
be  one  principle  more  deeply  written  than  any  other  in  the  mind 
of  every  American,  it  is  that  we  should  have  nothing  to  do  with 
conquest." 

Mr.  Elaine,  in  1890,  introduced  in  the  Pan-American  conference, 
a  series  of  resolutions,  the  first  of  which  declared,  "That  the  prin- 
ciple of  conquest  shall  not,  during  the  continuance  of  the  treaty 
of  arbitration,  be  recognized  as  admissible  under  American  pub- 
lic law." 

The  second  declared,  "That  all  cessions  of  territory  made  during 
the  continuance  of  the  treaty  of  arbitration  shall  be  void  if  made 
under  threats  of  war  or  in  the  presence  of  an  armed  force." 

Jefferson,  speaking  for  democrats,  repudiated  the  doctrine  of 
conquest;  Elaine,  speaking  for  republicans  as  well  as  democrats, 
adds  his  condemnation,  but  President  McKinley  insists  upon  con- 
quest as  one  of  the  sources  of  title  to  the  Philippine  Islands.  If 
we  have  a  right  to  take  the  Philippine  Islands  by  conquest,  we 
have  a  right  to  take  any  other  islands  or  continents  in  the  same 
way.  The  doctrine  of  conquest  is  absolutely  destructive  of  the 
doctrine  set  forth  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  If  one 
is  true,  the  other  must  be  false;  the  President  chose  the  European 
doctrine  and  abandoned  the  American  doctrine  when  he  gave  his 
instructions  to  the  commission. 


THE  FUTURE  OF  CUBA. 

A  subscriber  asks  what  position  the  democratic  party  takes  in 
regard  to  the  annexation  of  Cuba.  The  democratic  party  has  not 
had  occasion  to  take  a  position  on  this  question.  A  discussion 
of  annexation  at  this  time  would  be  premature;  it  would  be 
like  proposing  to  a  widow  at  the  funeral  of  her  husband.  The 
United  States  declared  the  Cubans  entitled  to  independence  and 
went  to  war  with  Spain  to  enforce  the  declaration.  To  discuss 
annexation  now  would  cast  suspicion  on  the  good  faith  of  the 
nation;  neither  is  there  anything  to  be  gained  by  raising  that 
question. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  91 

No  matter  whether  annexation  is  desirable  or  undesirable,  it  is 
both  right  and  expedient  that  the  Cubans  should  be  given  their 
independence.  If  annexation  is  undesirable,  there  can  be  no  ex- 
cuse for  delaying  independence;  if,  on  the  other  hand,  annexa- 
tion is  desirable,  the  granting  of  independence  will  hasten  it.  An- 
nexation to  be  satisfactory,  must  be  voluntary,  and  it  will  never 
be  voluntary  unless  the  Cuban  people  have  confidence  in  and 
affection  for  the  people  of  the  United  States.  And  how  can  they 
have  confidence  in  or  affection  for  the  American  people,  if  our 
nation  violates  its  promise  and  shows  more  interest  in  the  fran- 
chises secured  by  private  syndicates,  than  in  the  nation's  honor. 

The  imperialistic  policy  of  the  republican  party  has  induced 
the  leaders  to  abandon  the  peaceful  and  persuasive  methods  for- 
merly employed  by  our  government,  and  to  adopt  the  harsher 
methods  employed  by  arbitrary  rulers.  As  a  result  we  are  apt 
to  lose  the  prestige  which  a  war  for  humanity  gave  us ;  by  inspiring 
hatred  where  we  should  have  implanted  love,  we  are  apt  to  make 
enemies  of  people  who  wanted  to  be  friends. 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  AGUINALDO. 

A  most  important  event  was  the  capture  of  Aguinaldo.  Gen- 
eral Funston  planned,  and  with  the  aid  of  a  few  Americans  and 
a  number  of  natives,  executed  a  brilliant  and  daring  plot  for  the 
trapping  of  the  leader  of  the  Filipino  forces.  Learning  of  the 
whereabouts  of  Aguinaldo,  he  organized  a  small  band  and  ar- 
ranged with  some  friendly  Filipinos  to  conduct  the  Americans 
in  the  guise  of  prisoners  through  some  ninety  miles  of  the  enemy's 
country  to  the  presence  of  the  chief,  who  was  then  taken  into 
custody  by  General  Funston  and  conveyed  to  Manila. 

The  already  famous  Kansan  displayed  great  courage  in  the  un- 
dertaking, for  he  risked  a  double  danger — the  treachery  of  the 
natives  who  accompanied  him,  and  the  possibility  of  encountering 
a  superior  force. 

It  is  difficult  to  say  what  will  be  the  immediate  effect  of  the 
capture,  but  it  is  more  than  possible  that  it  will  hasten  the  end 
of  hostilities. 

When  the  administration  comes  to  deal  with  its  distinguished 
prisoner,  it  will  be  compelled  to  decide  whether  it  is  dealing  with 


92  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

a,  rebellious  subject  or  with  a  foreigner  who  owes  no  allegiance 
to  this  government. 

To  treat  Aguinaldo  as  a  rebellious  subject,  the  administration 
must  assert  that  a  defeated  monarch  can  bargain,  sell  and  con- 
vey title  to  the  subjects,  and  that  a  republic  can  first  incite  the 
subjects  of  a  monarch  to  rebellion,  or  assist  them  in  rebellion, 
then  make  allies  of  them  and  afterwards  buy  title  to  them  from 
the  king  whose  sovereignty  was  disputed. 

Aguinaldo  has  proven  his  ability  as  a  leader  and  his  military 
genius;  it  remains  to  be  seen  whether  in  prison  he  will  continue 
to  proclaim  the  right  of  his  people  to  independence  or  advise  his 
countrymen  to  submit  to  the  conquest  of  their  country  by  an 
overwhelming  force. 

The  question  of  imperialism  is  not  settled  by  the  imprisonment 
of  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  native  forces,  nor  will  it  be 
settled  by  the  surrender  of  all  who  are  in  arms.  If  the  Filipinos 
fail  in  their  appeal  to  force  there  is  still  left  an  appeal  to  the 
American  conscience.  The  republicans  have  taken  refuge  behind 
the  fact  that  war  existed,  and  have  tried  to  cry  down  criticism 
as  unpatriotic;  they  have  asked,  "How  can  we  treat  with  people 
who  are  shooting  down  our  soldiers?"  Peace  will  multiply  the 
embarrassments  of  the  administration,  for  it  cannot  long  conceal 
the  real  character  of  the  civil  government  which  is  to  be  imposed 
upon  the  Filipinos. 

The  war  in  the  Philippines  has  been  an  hindrance  rather  than 
an  aid  to  those  who  have  been  resisting  the  introduction  of  Eu- 
ropean ideas  and  methods  of  government  into  the  United  States. 


THOMAS  JEFFEESON. 

On  the  second  day  of  April,  1743,  Thomas  Jefferson  was  born, 
and  his  life  of  eighty-three  years  spanned  an  important  epoch 
in  the  nation's  history. 

At  the  age  of  thirty-one,  he  drafted  the  address  to  the  king, 
setting  forth  the  rights  of  the  colonists.  Two  years  later,  at 
the  age  of  thirty-three,  he  wrote  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 
and  for  fifty  years  thereafter,  until  his  death,  on  July  4,  1826,  he 
was  the  greatest  champion  of  human  rights  in  all  the  world. 

His  service  as  a  representative  in  state  and  federal  legislatures. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  93 

as  governor  of  Virginia,  ambassador  to  France,  secretary  of  state 
under  Washington,  vice-president,  under  Adams,  and  president, 
together  with  his  service  in  minor  offices,  covered  more  than  forty 
years  of  his  eventful  career.  But  the  work  which  he  did  for  man- 
kind was  so  far-reaching  in  its  eifect  and  so  enduring  in  its 
character,  that  he  is  remembered  for  his  ideas  rather  than  for  the 
positions  which  he  held. 

He  was  the  greatest  constructive  statesman  known  to  history. 
His  birth  and  environment  were  such  as  might  naturally  have 
made  him  an  aristocrat,  but  he  became  the  greatest  democrat; 
his  wealth,  considerable  for  that  day,  might  naturally  have  made 
him  partial  to  the  rich,  but  he  cast  his  lot  with  the  common 
people.  Many  with  less  education  have  from  a  feeling  of  superior- 
ity held  aloof  from  their  fellows,  but  he  employed  his  knowledge 
of  history,  of  law,  of  science  and  of  art  for  the  defense  and  pro- 
tection of  the  masses. 

He  believed  in  the  right  of  the  people  to  govern  themselves 
and  in  their  capacity  for  self-government.  When  near  the  end 
of  life,  fortified  by  an  experience  and  observation  such  as  few 
men  have  had,  he  wrote:  "I  am  not  among  those  who  fear  the 
people.  They,  and  not  the  rich,  are  our  dependence  for  continued 
freedom." 

Only  four  years  before  his  death  he  said:  "Independence  can 
be  trusted  nowhere  but  with  the  people  in  mass.  They  are  in- 
herently independent  of  all  but  moral  law."  At  another  time 
he  said:  "No  other  depositaries  of  power  than  the  people  them- 
selves have  ever  been  found,  which  did  not  end  in  converting 
to  their  own  profit  the  earnings  of  those  committed  to  their 
charge." 

And,  to  add  still  another  extract  from  his  writings:  "The 
people  are  the  only  sure  reliance  for  the  preservation  of  our 
liberty." 

He  not  only  believed  in  the  people,  but  he  understood  the 
people  and  recognized  the  distinctions  which  everywhere  exist, 
however  much  concealed  or  denied.  Read  the  analysis  which  he 
gave  of  parties  and  see  how  completely  it  has  been  born  out  by 
the  history  of  the  last  hundred  years: 

Men,  by  their  constitutions,  are  naturally  divided  into  two 
parties:  1.  Those  who  fear  and  distrust  the  people,  and  wish 


94  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

to  draw  all  powers  from  them  into  the  hands  of  the  higher 
classes.  2.  Those  who  identify  themselves  with  the  people,  have 
confidence  in  them,  cherish  them  and  consider  them  as  the  most 
honest  and  safe,  although  not  the  most  wise  depositary  of  the 
public  interest.  In  every  country  these  two  parties  exist,  and 
in  every  one  where  they  are  free  to  think,  speak  and  write,  they 
will  declare  themselves.  Call  them,  therefore,  liberals  and  serv- 
iles,  Jacobins  and  ultras,  whigs  and  tories,  republicans  and  federal- 
ists, aristocrats  and  democrats,  or  by  whatever  name  you  please, 
they  are  the  same  parties  still,  and  pursue  the  same  object.  The 
last  appellation  of  aristocrats  and  democrats  is  the  true  one  ex- 
pressing the  essence  of  all. 

Jefferson  not  only  announced  great  fundamental  principles,  but 
he  applied  them  to  so  many  different  questions  that  he  can  be 
read  as  an  authority  on  all  questions  of  to-day.  He  was  opposed 
to  imperialism  and  believed  in  self-government;  he  was  for  a 
republic  composed  of  equal  and  self-governing  states  and  entirely 
opposed  to  the  colonial  idea. 

He  was  opposed  to  a  large  army  and  believed  that  a  govern- 
ment was  stronger  when  resting  upon  the  love  of  the  people  than 
when  tolerated  only  because  of  fear. 

He  was  so  opposed  to  the  principle  of  monopoly  that  he  only 
excepted  copyrights  and  patents.  Here  is  the  amendment  which 
he  suggested  to  the  Constitution:  "Monopolies  may  be  allowed 
to  persons  for  their  own  productions  in  literature,  and  their  own 
inventions  in  the  arts,  for  a  term  not  exceeding  —  years,  but 
for  no  longer  term,  and  for  no  other  purpose."  At  another  time 
he  suggested  fourteen  years  as  the  limit  for  patents. 

His  hostility  to  monopoly  was  exemplified  in  1787,  in  a  com- 
munication to  John  Jay,  in  which  he  said:  "A  company  had 
silently  and  by  unfair  means  obtained  a  monopoly  for  the  making 
and  selling  of  spermaceti  candles  (in  France).  As  soon  as  we 
(Lafayette  assisted  him)  discovered  it,  we  solicited  its  suppression 
which  is  effected  by  a  clause  in  the  Arret," 

He  denounced  as  a  fatal  fallacy  the  doctrine  that  a  national 
debt  is  a  blessing. 

He  was  the  relentless  enemy  of  banks  of  issue.  At  .one  time 
he  declared  that  banks  of  issue  were  more  dangerous  than  standing 
armies.  At  another  time  he  said:  "I  hope  we  shall  crush  in  its 
birth  the  aristocracy  of  our  monied  corporations,  which  dare 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  95 

already  to  challenge  our  government  to  a  trial  of  strength,  and 
bid  defiance  to  the  laws  of  our  country." 

In    1819   he   said,    "Interdict   forever   to   both   the   state   and  ' 
national  government  the  power  of  establishing  any  paper  bank; 
for  without  this  interdiction  we  shall  have  the  same  ebbs  and 
flows   of  medium,   and  the   same   revolution   of  property   to  go 
through  every  twenty  or  thirty  years." 

He  was  a  believer  in  bimetallism,  and  no  one  who  understands 
his  principles  can  for  a  moment  conceive  of  him  yielding  to  the 
financial  influences  which  controlled  Mr.  Cleveland's  administra- 
tion and  the  republican  administrations  which  preceded  and  fol- 
lowed it. 

He  warned  his  countrymen  against  the  dangers  of  an  appointive 
judiciary  holding  office  for  life. 

Of  the  freedom  of  speech  he  said:  "The  liberty  of  speaking  and 
writing  guards  our  other  liberties." 

Of  the  freedom  of  the  press  he  wrote,  "Our  liberty  depends  on 
the  freedom  of  the  press,  and  that  cannot  be  limited  without 
being  lost." 

He  was  the  author  of  the  statute  of  Virginia  guaranteeing 
religious  liberty,  and  was  also  the  father  of  the  University  of 
Virginia.  He  favored  a  free  school  system  which  would  bring 
to  every  child  an  opportunity  to  secure  an  education. 

He  was  an  advocate  of  the  jury  system;  and  he  argued  in  favor 
of  freeing  the  slaves  three-quarters  of  a  century  before  Lincoln 
issued  his  emancipation  proclamation. 

His  writings  fill  many  volumes  and  cover  almost  every  con- 
ceivable subject,  but  through  all  that  he  said  there  runs  the 
evidence  of  a  great  heart  as  well  as  a  great  intellect. 

There  is  need  to-day  of  a  revival  of  Jeffersonian  principles.  He 
was  not  an  enemy  of  honestly  acquired  wealth,  but  he  believed 
that  the  government  had  no  right  to  exaggerate  by  favoritism  the 
differences  between  individuals.  He  believed  that  all  should  stand 
equal  before  the  law  and  that  every  department  of  government, 
executive,  legislative  and  judicial,  should  recognize  and  protect 
the  rights  of  the  humblest  citizen  as  carefully  as  it  would  the 
rights  of  the  greatest  and  most  influential. 

Jefferson's  principles,  applied  to  the  problems  of  the  twentieth 
century,  would  restore  the  republic  to  its  old  foundations  and 
make  it  the  supreme  moral  factor  in  the  world's  progress.  The 


96  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

application  of  his  principles  to-day  would  restore  industrial  in- 
dependence and  annihilate  trusts.  The  application  of  his  prin- 
ciples to-day  would  drive  the  money  changers  out  of  the  temple, 
insure  to  the  people  a  stable  currency  and  harmonize  labor  and 
capital  by  compelling  justice  to  both. 

Society  to-day  has  its  aristocratic  and  its  democratic  elements^ 
whether  Jefferson's  principles  are  applied  depends  upon  which 
element  controls  the  government. 


TWO  OATHS  OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

General  MacArthur  has  notified  the  War  Department  that  Agui- 
naldo  has  taken  the  "oath  of  allegiance."  The  oath  to  which  he 
has  subscribed  is  as  follows: 

I  hereby  renounce  all  allegiance  to  any  and  all  so-called  revo- 
lutionary governments  in  the  Philippine  Islands  and  recognize  and 
accept  the  supreme  authority  of  the  United  States  of  America;  I 
do  solemnly  swear  that  I  will  bear  true  faith  and  allegiance  to 
that  government ;  that  I  will  at  all  times  conduct  myself  as  a  faith- 
ful and  law-abiding  citizen  of  the  said  islands,  and  will  not,  either 
directly  or  indirectly  hold  correspondence  with  or  give  intelligence 
to  an  enemy  of  the  United  States,  nor  will  I  abet,  harbor  or  protect 
such  enemy ;  that  I  impose  upon  myself  these  voluntary  obligations 
without  any  mental  reservations  or  purpose  of  evasion,  so  help  me 
God. 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  oath  provides  that  the  subscriber 
shall  conduct  himself  as  "a  faithful  and  law-abiding  citizen"  of 
the  Philippine  Islands,  but  he  also  swears  that  he  will  "bear  true 
faith  and  allegiance  to  the  United  States  government." 

Allegiance  is  not  a  one-sided  affair.  No  less  an  authority  than 
Blackstone  has  described  it  as  "The  tie  that  binds  the  subject  to 
the  sovereign  in  return  for  that  protection  which  the  sovereign  af- 
fords the  subject." 

If  Aguinaldo  shall  fulfill  this  oath  and  "bear  true  faith  and 
allegiance"  to  the  United  States  government,  what  will  be  his 
political  status? 

In  the  McEnery  resolution,  the  United  States  Senate  disclaimed 
any  intention  of  making  the  Philippines  an  integral  part  of  the 
union,  or  of  making  the  inhabitants  of  those  islands  citizens  of  th6 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  97 

United  States.  And  it  is  the  generally  recognized  policy  of  the 
administration  that  the  spirit  of  the  McEnery  resolution  shall  be 
carried  out. 

So  while  we  require  Aguinaldo  to  make  oath  that  he  will  "bear 
true  faith  and  allegiance"  to  the  United  States  government,  we, 
in  fact,  prohibit  him  from  actually  fulfilling  that  oath ;  because  no 
individual  can  "bear  true  faith  and  allegiance"  to  a  government 
which  denies  to  him  the  privileges  of  citizenship,  which  prohibits 
him,  in  fact,  from  "bearing  true  faith  and  allegiance"  to  the  gov- 
ernment. 

The  trappings  of  empire  seem  strange  to  American  eyes.  None 
are  more  novel,  however,  than  a  so-called  "oath  of  allegiance," 
wherein  a  man  swears  allegiance  to  the  greatest  republic  on  earth, 
in  the  face  of  the  fact  that  that  republic  will  not  accept  his  alle- 
giance in  the  full  meaning  of  the  term. 

And,  speaking  of  oaths,  it  is  worth  while  to  compare  the  oath 
of  allegiance  above  given  with  the  following  oath  formerly  admin- 
istered. It  reads: 


OATH  OF  ALLEGIANCE 

FOR 
NATIVE  INHABITANTS  OF  THE  PHILIPPINE  ISLANDS. 

Manila,          ) 
Philippine  Islands.  ) 

I, ,  do  solemnly  swear  (or  affirm)  that  I  am  a  native 

inhabitant  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  I  do  further  swear  (or 
affirm)  that  I  will  support  and  defend  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States  against  all  enemies,  foreign  and  domestic;  that  I 
will  bear  true  faith  and  allegiance  to  the  same;  that  I  take  this 
obligation  freely  and  without  any  mental  reservation  or  purpose 
of  evasion. 


Sworn  to  and  subscribed  this day  of ,  before  me. 

Form  45.  Collector  of  Customs. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  Filipino  is  no  longer  required  to 
swear  that  he  "will  support  and  defend  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States  against  all  enemies."  This  change  is  eminently 
proper  for,  since  the  republican  party  has  shown  itself  to  be  an 
enemy  to  the  Constitution,  the  original  oath  might  require  the 


98  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Filipino  to  resist  republican  attacks  upon  the  Constitution.  The 
republican  party  discarded  the  Constitution  in  fact  some  months 
ago ;  it  seems  now  to  have  discarded  it  in  form. 


DENMARK'S  GOOD  EXAMPLE. 

The  London  Daily  News  is  authority  for  the  publication  of  the 
conditions  to  be  imposed  by  Denmark  upon  the  United  States  in 
the  case  of  a  transfer  of  the  Danish  West  Indies.  Its  Copenhagen 
correspondent  says: 

I  am  enabled  to  state,  on  the  very  best  authority,  that  Den- 
mark has  communicated  to  the  United  States  the  following  con- 
ditions for  the  sale  of  the  Danish  West  Indies: 

1.  Four  million  dollars  to  be  paid  to  Denmark. 

2.  The  population  to  decide  by  vote  whether  to  remain  Danish 
or  to  be  transferred  to  the  United  States. 

3.  If  the  vote  is  favorable  to  the  United  States,  then  the  in- 
habitants to  become  immediately  not  only  American  subjects,  but 
American  citizens. 

4.  Products  of  the  island  to  be  admitted  to  the  United  States 
free  of  duty. 

It  is  supposed  here  that  Washington  will  not  readily  accept  the 
third  and  fourth  conditions. 

A  few  years  ago  it  would  not  have  been  considered  necessary  for 
any  nation  to  insist  upon  such  conditions  for  our  nation  would 
have  suggested  them,  but  recent  events  have  made  it  necessary  for 
nations  dealing  with  us  to  provide  for  the  future  welfare  of  their 
subjects.  Denmark  sets  a  good  example  but  it  is  humiliating  for 
this  nation  to  be  compelled  to  accept  instructions  in  liberty. 


LINCOLN  AND  THE  SILVER  REPUBLICANS. 

The  San  Francisco  Call,  speaking  of  the  action  of  Senator 
Dubois  and  other  silver  republicans  in  joining  the  democratic  party, 
takes  occasion  to  misrepresent  the  position  of  Abraham  Lincoln 
on  the  silver  question.  It  says:  "The  messages  and  writings  of 
Mr.  Lincoln  prove  him  to  have  been  the  predecessor  of  Mr.  Cleve- 
land in  declaring  the  principles  of  sound  money,  which  Mr.  Cleve- 
land made  the  pole  star  of  his  administration.  Both  Lincoln  and 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  99 

Cleveland  stood  exactly  in  line  with  Jefferson  and  Jackson  on  the 
issue  of  sound  money." 

It  also  denies  the  right  of  the  silver  republican  to  claim  any 
kinship  with  Lincoln,  or  his  principles.  It  is  not  strange  that 
the  gold  standard  papers  attempt  to  distort  history,  for  they  are 
compelled  to  do  so  in  order  to  find  any  support  for  their  financial 
theories. 

Jefferson  believed  that  the  money  unit  should  rest  on  the  two 
metals,  gold  and  silver;  while  Mr.  Cleveland  believes  that  the 
money  unit  should  rest  on  one  metal,  gold.  Jackson  affixed  his 
signature  to  the  bill  which  provided  for  the  free  and  unlimited 
coinage  of  gold  and  silver  at  the  legal  ratio  of  sixteen  to  one, 
without  waiting  for  the  aid  or  consent  of  any  other  nation,  and 
in  changing  the  ratio  from  fifteen  to  one,  to  sixteen  to  one  he 
reduced  the  size  of  the  gold  dollar.  Mr.  Cleveland  is  the  leader 
of  those  democrats  who  are  opposed  to  the  coinage  of  silver  into 
legal  tender  money  at  any  ratio  or  under  any  circumstances. 

Raj'mond's  Life  of  Lincoln,  published  soon  after  the  death  of 
President  Lincoln  and  before  the  republican  party  began  its  crusade 
against  silver,  reproduces  a  message  which  Lincoln  sent  to  the 
miners  of  the  west.  The  following  is  an  extract  from  it: 

Mr.  Colfax,  I  want  you  to  take  a  message  from  me  to  the  miners 
whom  you  visit.  I  have  very  large  ideas  of  the  mineral  wealth 
of  our  nation.  I  believe  it  practically  inexhaustible.  It  abounds 
all  over  the  western  country,  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the 
Pacific,  and  its  development  has  scarcely  commenced.  During  the 
war,  when  we  were  adding  a  couple  of  million  dollars  a  day  to 
our  national  debt,  I  did  not  care  about  encouraging  the  increase 
in  the  volume  of  our  precious  metals.  We  had  the  country  to  save 
first.  But  now  that  the  rebellion  is  overthrown,  and  we  know 
pretty  nearly  the  amount  of  our  national  debt,  the  more  gold  and 
silver  we  mine,  we  make  the  payment  of  that  debt  so  much  the 
easier. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above  that  Mr.  Lincoln  held  to  the 
quantitative  theory  of  money — a  theory  denied  by  the  republicans 
in  the  campaign  of  '96.  It  will  also  be  seen  that  he  was  willing 
to  make  the  payment  of  the  national  debt  easier  by  increasing  the 
amount  of  money;  while  Mr.  Cleveland  tried  to  make  the  debt 
harder  to  pay  by  decreasing  the  volume  of  money. 

On  the  subject  of  paper  money  also  the  silver  republicans  are 


loo  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

in  line  with  the  early  statesmen  and  opposed  to  the  latter  day 
policies  of  Mr.  Cleveland  and  the  republican  leaders.  Jefferson 
was  opposed  to  banks  of  issue,  state  or  national;  Jackson  made 
the  greater  part  of  his  reputation  by  his  fight  against  the  recharter 
of  the  national  bank;  and  Lincoln  signed  the  bill  which  provided 
for  the  greenback.  Jefferson  considered  the  issue  of  paper  money 
a  function  of  government  and  insisted  that  the  banks  should  go 
out  of  the  business  of  governing.  Mr.  Cleveland  considers  the 
issue  of  paper  money  a  function  of  banks  and  believes  that  the 
government  should  go  out  of  the  business  of  banking. 

Lincoln  assisted  in  establishing  the  national  bank  in  order  to 
furnish  a  market  for  government  bonds  during  the  war;  now  the 
republicans  are  retiring  the  greenbacks  in  order  to  give  the  banks 
a  chance  to  issue  more  paper  money. 

Senator  Teller,  Senator  Dubois,  ex-Senator  Towne  and  the  other 
silver  republicans  are  adhering  to  doctrine  which  in  former  times 
was  republican  as  well  as  democratic.  The  republican  leaders  and 
gold  democrats  are  the  revolutionists. 


THE  YOUNG  MAN'S  CHANCES. 

The  million  dollar  salary  voted  to  Mr.  Schwab  by  the  steel  tmst 
caused  numerous  republican  editors'  to  write  enthusiastic  articles 
on  the  opportunities  offered  to  young  men  by  the  great  corpora- 
tions. The  subject  has  now  been  taken  up  by  debating  societies 
and  the  school  boys  are  investigating  the  matter  for  themselves. 
That  Mr.  Schwab's  rise  to  fame  and  fortune  has  been  rapid,  there 
is  no  doubt,  neither  is  there  any  doubt  that  his  present  position 
is  attractive  to  many,  but  the  very  fact  that  his  case  has  attracted 
so  much  attention  is  conclusive  proof  that  it  is  extraordinary.  He 
has  won  the  capital  prize  in  the  industrial  lottery,  but  where  a 
system  of  monopoly  offers  such  an  opportunity  to  one  man,  it 
closes  the  door  of  opportunity  to  thousands  of  others  equally  able 
and  deserving. 

When  all  the  great  industries  are  controlled  by  trusts,  there  will 
be  a  few  big  salaried  officials  and  the  remainder  of  the  employes 
will  be  condemned  to  perpetual  clerkships  with  no  possibility  of 
independence  in  the  business  world. 

If  the  present  tendency  toward  consolidation  becomes  perma- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  101 

Dent,  it  is  only  a  question  of  time  when  the  principal  positions  in 
the  corporations  will  go  to  relatives  and  favorites,  and  descend 
from  generation  to  generation.  Competition  puts  a  premium  on 
brains;  monopoly  puts  a  premium  on  blood. 

Young  men,  and  old  men  for  that  matter,  will  find  that  indus- 
trial independence  will  give  a  sufficient  opportunity  to  a  large 
number  of  people,  while  the  trusts  will  give  an  unusual  opportunity 
to  a  small  number  of  people. 


A  DISASTBOUS  VICTORY. 

In  the  election  of  Mr.  Wells,  as  mayor  of  St.  Louis,  the  re-or- 
ganizers have  scored  a  triumph.  The  democrats  of  St.  Louis  and 
Missouri  will,  however,  find  it  worth  their  while  to  calculate  the 
cost  of  the  victory  and  to  prepare  for  the  struggle  that  awaits 
them. 

In  November,  1900,  the  republican  national  ticket  received  60,- 
608  votes  in  St.  Louis,  and  the  democratic  national  ticket,  which 
Mr.  Wells  refused  to  support,  received  59,941.  At  the  recent  city 
election,  Mr.  Wells  received  43,012  votes — nearly  seventeen  thou- 
sand less  than  the  democratic  vote  of  last  fall,  while  Mr.  Parker, 
the  republican  candidate  for  mayor,  received  34,840  votes — about 
twenty-six  thousand  less  than  the  republican  vote  of  last  fall.  Mr. 
Merriwether,  a  democrat  in  national  politics,  running  upon  a  mu- 
nicipal ownership  platform,  received  30,568  votes  and  Mr.  Filley, 
a  republican,  running  on  an  independent  ticket,  received  2,068 
votes.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  total  vote  cast  for  mayor  was  large 
for  a  local  contest,  amounting  to  about  ninety  per  cent,  of  the 
vote  cast  last  fall.  If  Mr.  Wells  and  Mr.  Parker  had  polled  the 
same  proportion  of  the  total  vote  that  the  national  candidates  of 
their  parties  polled  in  1900,  Mr.  Wells  would  have  received  about 
55,000  votes  and  Mr.  Parker  about  55,500. 

It  is  impossible  to  ascertain  how  many  democrats  voted  for  Mr. 
Merriwether  and  how  many  voted  for  Mr.  Parker,  just  as  it  is 
impossible  to  say  how  many  republicans  voted  for  Mr.  Wells  and 
how  many  for  Mr.  Merriwether,  but  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose 
that  the  republican  vote  which  left  Mr.  Parker  went  largely  to 
Mr.  Wells,  while  the  democratic  vote  which  left  Mr.  Wells  went 
principally  to  Mr.  Merriwether. 


1O2  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Mr.  Wells  lost  at  least  twelve  thousand  democratic  votes,  if  he 
gained  no  republican  votes,  and  to  this  must  be  added  a  sum  equal 
to  the  republican  votes  received.  If,  for  instance,  he  received  10,- 
000  republican  votes,  the  account  would  stand  thus:  For  Wells, 
33,000  democratic  votes  and  10,000  republican  votes — total,  43,000 
votes.  But  this  would  show  a  loss  of  22,000  democratic  votes ;  can 
the  re-organizers  afford  to  trade  22,000  democratic  votes,  good  at 
all  elections,  for  10,000  republican  votes,  good  only  in  local  elec- 
tions and  when  a  republican  is  nominated  on  the  democratic  ticket  ? 

If  Mr.  Wells  only  received  5,000  republican  votes,  the  account 
would  stand:  Wells,  38,000  democratic  votes  and  5,000  republi- 
can votes — total,  43,000.  This  would  show  a  loss  of  seventeen 
thousand  democratic  votes,  or  an  exchange  of  three  democrats  for 
one  republican.  Is  there  anything  in  this  victory  to  boast  of? 
If  the  democrats  who  voted  for  Mr.  Merriwether  had  followed 
the  example  set  by  Mr.  Wells  and  voted  the  republican  ticket,  Mr. 
Parker  would  have  been  elected  by  a  considerable  majority. 

But  what  of  the  future?  The  Republic,  with  commendable 
frankness,  recommends  a  national  application  of  the  St.  Louis 
plan  of  harmonizing.  It  says: 

St.  Louis  has  supplied  the  example  of  a  thoroughly  united  de- 
mocracy. With  little  evidence  of  reluctance  all  elements  of  the 
party  joined  hands  in  the  recent  campaign.  They  worked  together 
harmoniously  and  voted  without  scratching. 

To  obtain  national  ascendency,  this  unification  must  proceed 
heartily  all  over  the  country. 

With  a  united  democracy  the  party  is  certain  to  win  the  next 
national  election.  The  republican  party  has  drifted  so  far  away 
from  American  principles,  that  the  revolt  of  the  people  will  be 
overwhelming  when  the  forces  naturally  democratic  are  found  act- 
ing together. 

The  St.  Louis  democracy  has  set  its  face  to  the  future.  Give 
us  such  a  union  of  popular  forces  in  all  the  states,  and  the  next 
national  election  will  be  from  that  moment  won. 

This  is  exactly  what  might  have  been  expected.  Mr.  Wells 
was  not  nominated  because  the  re-organizers  were  especially  inter- 
ested in  a  good  municipal  government;  he  was  nominated  because 
he  represents  a  corporate  element  which  calls  itself  democratic,  as 
a  matter  of  habit,  but  gives  its  pecuniary  and  political  support  to 
the  republican  party.  It  will  never  be  found  supporting  a  demo- 
cratic ticket  unless  that  ticket  is  selected  and  controlled  bv  those 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  .103 

who  have  some  special  privileges  which  they  desire  protected  by 
the  government. 

If  the  democracy  of  St.  Louis  had  defeated  Mr.  Wells,  the 
democracy  of  Missouri  would  have  been  spared  the  fight  which 
must  now  be  made.  The  contest  which  resulted  in  the  Pirtle 
Springs  convention  was  fought  over  the  silver  question,  the  fight 
which  is  now  opened  will  be  a  broader  one,  and  will  involve  the 
very  existence  of  the  party. 

The  Republic  will  lead  the  Francis-Wells  element  and  will  be 
supported  by  the  railroad  attorneys  and  corporation  agents  as  well 
as  by  the  gold  standard  advocates.  Every  democratic  newspaper 
in  the  state  will  be  compelled  to  take  sides  and  a  contest  which 
might  have  been  settled  in  a  day,  if  confined  to  St.  Louis,  will 
keep  the  state  stirred  up  for  the  next  four  years. 

What  is  the  use,  it  may  be  asked,  of  opposing  the  Eepublic- 
Francis- Wells  combination  ?  Why  not  allow  it  to  control  the  party 
organization  ?  The  answer  is  found  in  the  election  of  1894.  Such 
a  slump  in  the  democratic  vote  as  that  which  occurred  in  that 
year  or  in  St.  Louis  a  few  days  ago,  would  give  the  state  to  the 
republicans.  There  is  no  room  in  this  country  for  two  parties 
representing  republican  principles;  unless  the  democratic  party 
faithfully  and  courageously  opposes  plutocracy  all  along  the  line, 
it  has  neither  chance  nor  reason  for  existence. 

If  the  St.  Louis  contest  had  been  purely  a  local  one,  THE  COM- 
MOXER  would  have  taken  no  part  in  it,  but  as  it  was  a  link  in  the 
chain — a  part  of  a  plan,  national  in  extent, — to  republicanize 
the  democratic  organization,  this  paper  called  attention  to  the 
facts  and  pointed  out  the  purpose  of  the  re-organizers.  The  daily 
papers  outside  of  St.  Louis  openly  discussed  the  scheme,  and  since 
the  election,  the  rejoicing  has  been  general  among  those  self- 
styled  democrats  who  have  twice  aided  in  electing  a  republican 
president.  The  election  of  Mr.  Wells  was  a  disastrous  victory 
for  the  democracy  of  St.  Louis,  Missouri  and  the  nation. 


104  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


VI. 

AN  UNFORTUNATE  COMPARISON. 

A  New  York  firm  has  published  in  book  form  an  address  de- 
livered last  November  by  Joseph  H.  Choate,  our  ambassador  to 
Great  Britain.  This  address  was  delivered  before  the  Edinburg 
Philosophical  Institution.  At  that  time  Queen  Victoria  was  liv- 
ing. Mr.  Choate  read  to  the  assembled  Britishers  the  famous  letter 
written  by  Abraham  Lincoln  to  the  Boston  mother,  Mrs.  Bixby, 
who  had  given  five  sons  to  the  union  cause.  That  letter  cannot 
be  printed  too  often. 

I  have  been  shown  in  the  files  of  the  War  Department  a  state- 
ment that  you  are  the  mother  of  five  sons  who  have  died  gloriously 
on  the  field  of  battle.  I  feel  how  weak  and  fruitless  must  be  any 
words  of  mine  which  should  attempt  to  beguile  you  from  your 
grief  for  a  loss  so  overwhelming — but  I  cannot  refrain  from  ten- 
dering to  you  the  consolation  which  may  be  found  in  the  thanks 
of  the  Republic  they  died  to  save.  I  pray  that  our  Heavenly 
Father  may  assuage  the  anguish  of  your  bereavement  and  leave 
you  only  the  cherished  memory  of  the  loved  and  the  lost,  and 
the  solemn  pride  that  must  be  yours  to  have  laid  so  costly  a  sacri- 
fice upon  the  altar  of  freedom. 

When  Ambassador  Choate  had  finished  reading  this  splendid 
epistle,  he  said  to  the  assembled  Britishers: 

Hardly  could  your  illustrious  sovereign  from  the  depths  of  her 
queenly  and  womanly  heart  have  spoken  words  more  touching  and 
tender  to  soothe  the  stricken  mothers  of  her  own  soldiers. 

Such  a  comparison  was  exceedingly  unfortunate. 

Mr.  Choate  was  quoting  from  Abraham  Lincoln,  a  man  among 
the  most  famous  of  all  the  men  of  the  world  for  his  ability  to  say 
the  right  thing  at  the  right  time,  for  the  purity  and  the  eloquence 
of  his  language,  for  the  tenderness  and  the  gentleness  of  his  heart. 

One  of  the  sweetest  things  Lincoln  ever  wrote  was  the  epistle  to 
the  woman  who  had  lost  five  sons  on  the  field  of  battle,  and  yet  its 
tenderness  and  its  eloquence  were  characteristic  of  the  man,  and 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  105 

entirely  in  keeping  with  his  record  as  an  orator  and  writer.  But 
this  American  ambassador,  standing  before  a  British  audience, 
thinks  he  has  paid  a  remarkably  high  tribute  to  one  of  the  greatest 
orators  and  writers  in  all  history  when  he  has  said,  "hardly"  could 
the  British  sovereign  have  done  better.  The  British  sovereign  was 
a  good  woman,  but  she  was  not  at  all  famous  for  her  literary  ability. 
The  comparison  made  by  Mr.  Choate  was  doubtless  pleasing  to 
his  British  audience  but  it  was  unworthy  of  the  great  lawyer  who 
made  the  comparison  and  it  was  a  piece  of  flunkeyism  of  which  no 
man  in  his  position  should  be  guilty. 


A  SAMPLE  OF  WHITEWASHING. 

Whitewashing  is  so  common  in  legislative  bodies  now-a-days  that 
the  ordinary  resolution  denying  charges  and  vindicating  the  accused 
attracts  little  attention,  but  the  resolution  reported  by  a  special 
committee  of  the  Nebraska  legislature  deserves  to  rank  among  the 
prize  specimens  of  this  kind  of  literature. 

On  the  last  day  of  the  session  (such  resolutions  are  generally 
brought  forward  on  the  last  day)  Representative  Wilkinson  of  Cass 
County  presented  a  report  from  his  committee — but  let  the  report 
speak  for  itself. 

Mr.  Speaker  and  Members  of  the  Legislature:  Your  house 
committee  appointed  to  investigate  and  report  regarding  rumors 
to  the  effect  that  undue  influence  was  exerted  by  railroad  com- 
panies and  candidates  for  United  States  senators,  with  the  mem- 
bers of  the  legislature,  beg  leave  to  make  the  following  report: 

We  have  made  a  thorough  and  personal  investigation,  and  find 
the  members  of  this  Twenty-seventh  session  as  a  body,  regardless 
of  party,  to  be  of  exceptionally  high  moral  character ;  that  an  honest 
effort  was  made  by  the  members  to  promote  the  best  interests  of 
the  state  by  the  passage  of  good  laws  and  the  careful  appropriation 
of  the  state's  money,  and  that  class  and  unjust  legislation  was 
honestly  opposed;  that  transportation  given  the  members  by  the 
railroad  companies  (which  is  a  common  custom)  was  purely  com- 
plimentary, and  without  in  any  way  attempting  to  influence  the  vote 
of  members  and  their  choice  of  candidates  for  United  States  sena- 
tors, or  for  the  passage  of  any  special  act  of  legislation. 

"In  the  investigation  the  members  were  without  exception  willing 
and  ready  to  answer  every  question  that  would  lead  to  the  discovery 
of  anything  irregular,  as  far  as  they  knew,  with  the  result  that  in 


io6  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

not  a  single  instance  could,  any  thing  be  charged  or  proved  against 
any  member  or  candidate  for  United  States  senator;  on  the  con- 
trary, the  true  spirit  of  western  and  manly  independence  exerted 
itself  throughout  the  entire  session,  and  which  we  believe  was  most 
thoroughly  demonstrated  in  the  contest  for  the  selection  of  two 
United  States  senators  just  ended,  and  that  all  reports  to  the  con- 
trary are  false.  WILKINSON, 

Chairman  of  the  Special  House  Committee. 

What  more  could  have  been  desired?  The  examination  was 
"thorough  and  personal ;"  the  members  "regardless  of  party"  were 
found  to  be  "of  exceptionally  high  moral  character;"  they  had 
all  put  forth  an  "honest  effort"  to  promote  "the  best  interests  of 
the  state"  by  the  passage  of  "good  laws"  and  the  "careful  appropria- 
tion of  the  state's  money,"  etc. 

The  lexicon  of  eulogy  was  exhausted  and  complimentary  and 
congratulatory  expressions  were  used  to  the  limit.  The  passes  given 
to  the  members  (a  common  custom,  as  the  report  explains)  were 
"purely  complimentary"  and  were  not  given  with  any  thought  of 
"influencing  the  vote  of  members  and  their  choice  of  candidates." 
The  members  were  "without  exception"  willing  to  answer  "every 
question,"  but  not  in  "a  single  instance"  could  anything  be  "charged 
or  proved  against  any  member  or  candidate  for  United  States 
senate,"  etc.,  etc. 

Here  was  a  vindication  that  vindicated  and  an  exoneration  that 
exonerated.  Did  the  House  adopt  the  report  and  thus  seal  for  all 
time  the  lips  of  the  critic  ?  Nay,  not  so. 

Up  rose  Mr.  Whitmore,  a  republican  and  enquired  why  the  com- 
mittee had  not  called  upon  him  for  evidence.  He  intimated  that 
he  could  have  given  some  information  about  the  "hordes,"  "some- 
times several  hundred  in  one  day"  brought  in  by  the  railroads  to 
help  "one  certain  candidate." 

Chairman  Wilkinson  admitted  reluctantly  that  Mr.  Whitmore 
may  possibly  have  been  overlooked  by  the  committee. 

Then  Mr.  Dahlsten,  a  fusionist,  took  the  floor.  He  said  that, 
as  the  matter  was  up,  he  would  like  to  testify  that  he  had  been 
offered  money  to  absent  himself  from  the  joint  session  and  thus 
aid  in  the  election  of  "a  certain  candidate."  He  added  that  other 
members  of  the  House  had  spoken  to  him  of  receiving  similar  offers. 
It  was  evident  that  Mr.  Dahlsten  had  also  been  overlooked  by  the 
committee. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  107 

Then  a  third  member  ventured  the  opinion  that  the  investigation 
had  not  been  conducted  in  such  a  manner  as  to  make  the  report  of 
any  value  and  said  that  as  all  the  members  were  honorable  men,  he 
did  not  see  any  use  of  any  resolution  at  all.  By  this  time  Chairman 
Wilkinson  was  in  a  mood  to  accept  almost  any  suggestion  which 
would  put  an  end  to  the  discussion  and  he  lost  no  time  in  withdraw- 
ing the  resolution. 

The  legislature  adjourned,  the  members  separated  and  wended 
their  ways  to  their  respective  homes,  but  they  carried  with  them 
no  self-bestowed  vindication.  When  the  finger  of  suspicion  is 
pointed  at  them  and  revilers  attack  their  fair  fame  they  will  be 
defenseless.  Their  children  will  never  know,  as  a  matter  of  record, 
that  they  are  all  "of  exceptionally  high  moral  character"  and  that 
they  all  made  "an  honest  effort"  "to  promote  the  best  interests  of 
the  state." 

But  while  the  members  generally  languish  under  suspicions 
which  they  refused  to  remove  by  resolution,  Mr.  Wilkinson  of  Cass 
County  will  go  thundering  down  the  ages  as  the  author  of  one  of 
the  most  artistic  and  comprehensive  resolutions  ever  offered  for 
the  purification  and  glorification  of  Sofons. 

If  any  republican  reader  doubts  the  correctness  of  the  above  re- 
port he  is  respectfully  referred  to  that  uncompromising,  though 
not  always  courteous,  republican  newspaper,  the  Nebraska  State 
Journal,  from  the  columns  of  which  the  above  information  has  been 
gleaned. 

THE  EICE  DEPORTATION. 

The  American  people  do  not  take  kindly  to  deportation,  but  many 
of  them  will  be  amazed  when  they  learn  all  the  facts  concerning 
the  deportation  of  George  T.  Rice,  the  newspaper  editor  who  was 
sent  out  of  the  Philippine  Islands  because  he  made  charges  affect- 
ing the  integrity  of  a  public  official. 

When  Mr.  Rice  landed  in  San  Francisco  he  made  a  complete  state- 
ment, which  was  printed  in  the  San  Francisco  Star,  a  weekly  news- 
paper. Mr.  Rice  states  that  in  his  capacity  as  an  editor  he  criti- 
cised a  custom  house  official.  Rice  obtained  his  information  from 
sea  captains  and  merchants  who  had  had  dealings  with  the  custom 
hou?p.  and  who  claimed  that  they  had  been  defrauded.  Rice  states 
that  he  made  an  investigation  and  found  the  charges  to  be  true. 


io8  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  custom  house  official  then  decreed  that  Editor  Eice  should  be 
debarred  from  the  custom  house.  The  military  authorities  went 
to  the  aid  of  the  customs  official,  and  in  a  star  chamber  proceeding, 
to  which  Eice  was  not  admitted,  a  pretense  of  investigating  the 
accused  official  was  made. 

The  official  was  then  given  a  clean  bill,  and  the  military  authori- 
ties summoned  Editor  Eice  before  them. 

Colonel  Crowder  acted  as  inquisitor  on  this  occasion,  and  Mr. 
Eice  says  the  following  dialogue  took  place : 

Crowder — Don't  you  think  you  were  wrong  in  this  matter  ? 

Eice — No,  sir. 

Crowder — Then  you  still  think  you  are  right  ? 

Eice — Yes,  sir;  I  know  I  am. 

Crowder — I  am  sorry  for  you,  young  man ;  if  you  still  persist  in 
saying  you  are  right,  my  orders  are  from  General  MacArthur  to 
deport  yon. 

Eice — If  you  will  give  me  a  fair  trial  in  court  I  can  prove  that 
I  am  right. 

Crowder — Under  martial  law,  such  characters  as  you  receive  no 
trial.  We  have  not  the  time. 

Eice — Can  I  see  the  Evidence  in  the  investigation  which  you 
claim  proves  my  charges  false? 

Crowder — No;  the  investigation  was  placed  in  competent  hands 
and  does  not  need  your  approval.  Your  statements  have  been 
proven  to  our  satisfaction  to  be  without  foundation,  and  you  will 
be  deported  as  an  incendiary  character  and  a  menace  to  the  mili- 
tary situation.  You  are  too  young  to  let  go  on  slandering  men 
of  honesty  and  capability,  and  I  consider  your  character  as  having 
fallen  to  its  lowest  level.  In  writing  and  publishing  such  articles 
you  endanger  the  foundation  of  our  military  system.  Such  con- 
duct as  this  I  consider  equal  to  traitorism. 

Eice — So  far  as  being  a  traitor,  I  have  served  my  country  in 
the  field  for  over  a  year,  and  never  had  my  love  of  country  so 
much  as  questioned,  while  you  have  never  been  under  fire  and 
never  expect  to  be,  and  you  dare  question  my  patriotism !  I 
have  more  patriotism  to  the  square  inch  than  you  have  in  your 
whole  carcass. 

Crowder — Be  careful;  a  few  more  words  and  I  will  put  you  in 
Bilibid !  (the  jail.) 

Eice — Put  me  there!  I  would  rather  be  an  honest  prisoner 
than  be  a  craven  and  deny  the  truth  through  fear  of  your  power. 

An  order  was  then  issued  directing  the  deportation  of  Eice. 
Before  this  order  was  put  into  execution,  Colonel  Crowder  called 
upon  Eice,  and  this  dialogue  is  self-explanatory: 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  109 

The  military  governor  (Mac Arthur)  directs  me  to  ask  you  that 
if  your  conduct  is  satisfactory  up  to  the  time  of  your  deportation 
and  he  sees  fit  to  remit  your  sentence,  will  you  promise  that  in 
the  future  you  will  never  write  articles  of  a  similar  character 
against  any  officer  of  the  military? 

Eice — No,  sir.  I  hold  the  right  to  publish  anything  anywhere, 
whenever  I  have  proof  of  my  statements. 

Crowder — Your  case  is  hopeless. 

Upon  Crowder's  order  Rice  was  delivered  to  the  provost  marshal. 
The  editor  was  then  placed  in  solitary  confinement  on  January  23, 
where  he  remained  until  January  27.  On  January  29,  Editor 
Eice  sailed  for  the  United  States. 

Evidently  it  does  not  pay  to  criticise  public  officials  in  the 
Philippines  under  the  carpet-bag  regime. 


WATTEESON  ON  DESTINY. 

In  a  recent  issue  of  the  Courier- Journal,  Mr.  Watterson,  that 
quaint  and  always  interesting  journalist,  advises  his  party  to  raise 
the  white  flag  and  surrender  to  the  republican  party  on  the  ques- 
tion of  imperialism.  He  does  not  announce  that  he  is  convinced 
of  the  righteousness  of  the  republican  position,  but  he  excuses  him- 
self by  assuming  that  it  is  impossible  to  combat  the  forces  which 
seem  to  be  behind  the  republican  party.  He  admits  that  imperial- 
ism in  an  innovation  upon  American  principles  and  antagonistic 
to  the  teachings  of  the  earlier  statesmen.  Here  are  his  words: 

Let  us  say  at  once  that  the  scheme  of  occupying  a  territory 
remote  from  our  borders,  of  subduing  a  people  alien  to  our  char- 
acter and  institutions  and  of  undertaking  a  system  of  colonial  gov- 
ernment over  this  territory  and  these  peoples  without  their  con- 
sent— and  apparently  in  opposition  to  their  will — is  not  merely  a 
serious  innovation  upon  the  original  plan  embodied  by  the  Con- 
stitution of  the  United  States,  and  contemplated  by  the  authors  of 
that  Constitution,  but  that  is  repugnant  to  the  prudent  counsels 
delivered  by  the  wisest  of  our  older  statesmen,  to  say  nothing 
about  the  teaching  of  history. 

After  a  brief  review  of  the  past  one  hundred  years,  he  accepts 
the  republican  doctrine  of^  Providence  and  says: 

God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way  His  wonders  to  perform.  He 
made  the  Spanish  war.  He  was  not  less  behind  Dewey  in  Manila 


i  io  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

than  He  wag  behind  Shafter  and  Sampson  and  Schley  at  Santiago. 
What  was  His  all-wise  purpose?  We  know  not.  But  there  we 
were  and  there  we  are;  and  nothing  is  surer  in  the  future  than 
that  we  shall  be  there  a  century  hence  unless  some  power  turns  up 
strong  enough  to  drive  us  out.  Instead,  therefore,  of  discussing 
the  abstraction  of  imperialism,  illustrated  by  the  rights  and  wrongs 
of  the  Philippines,  Mr.  Bryan  were  more  profitably  engaged  in 
considering  how  we  may  best  administer  possessions,  which,  for 
good  or  for  evil,  are  with  us  to  stay. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  he  adopts  the  republican  theory  that 
God  is  responsible  for  what  we  have  done;  that  it  is  a  matter  of 
destiny,  and  that  we  are  being  swept  along  by  influences  over 
which  we  have  no  control. 

The  doctrine  enunciated  by  the  rebuplicans  since  the  Spanish 
war,  and  now  endorsed  by  so  great  an  editor  as  Mr.  Watterson, 
is  not  only  dangerous,  but  it  is  immoral.  It  is  politically  dangerous 
because  it  encourages  the  republican  party  to  shirk  responsibility 
for  its  sins  &nd  shield  itself  behind  the  pretense  that  it  is  working 
out  the  will  of  the  Almighty ;  and  it  is  immoral  because  it  obliter- 
ates the  distinction  between  right  and  wrong.  The  republican  ar- 
gument is  built  upon  the  theory  that  wrong  done  upon  a  large  scale 
loses  its  evil  character,  and  becomes  an  integral  part  of  God's  plan. 
It  is  in  keeping  with  the  tendency  to  call  an  embezzler  a  Napoleon 
of  finance,  provided  the  amount  embezzled  is  large. 

Mr.  Watterson  has  not  in  the  past  been  in  the  habit  of  defending 
his  position  with  the  philosophy  which  he  now  employs.  In  former 
years  he  was  known  as  the  special  champion  of  "the  star-eyed  God- 
dess of  Eeform."  When  the  democratic  party  went  down  to  defeat, 
as  it  often  did,  he  did  not  say:  "God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform.  He  made  protection  and  the  republican 
party,  and,  therefore,  we  must  bow  to  both."  On  the  contrary,  he 
raised  the  democratic  banner  aloft  and  appealed  time  and  again  to 
the  intelligence  of  the  American  people.  Neither  has  he  been  in 
the  habit  of  excusing  the  crimes  of  individuals  by  attributing  them 
to  divine  inspiration.  When  Gov.  Goebel  was  assassinated  Mr.  Wat- 
terson did  not  say :  "God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way  His  wonders 
to  perform ;  He  prompted  the  assassin  to  kill !  We  cannot  under- 
stand His  all-wise  purpose,  but  there  we  were,  and  here  we  are,  and 
there  is  nothing  to  be  done  about  it." 

Instead,  he  insisted  that  a  murder  had  been  committed  and  that 
the  guilty  should  be  brought  to  justice. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  1 1 1 

When  the  Louisville  and  Nashville  Railroad  entered  the  arena  of 
politics,  and  began  its  work  of  corruption  and  intimidation,  Mr. 
Watterson  did  not  say :  "God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way  His  won- 
ders to  perform.  This  Railroad  Company  has  sprung  into  existence 
and  must  be  carrying  out  the  purposes  of  an  all-wise  Ruler." 

Far  from  it !  He  insisted  that  the  railroad  should  keep  out  of 
politics,  and  attend  to  the  business  for  which  it  was  organized. 

There  is  no  more  reason  for  throwing  upon  the  Almighty  the 
responsibility  for  a  war  of  conquest,  and  for  an  imperial  policy 
which  burdens  our  nation  with  a  large  army  and  suppresses  the 
aspirations  of  distant  peoples  for  self-government,  than  there  is  to 
blame  Him  because  one  individual  chooses  to  kill  another,  or  because 
a  great  corporation  attempts  to  control  a  state  government. 

Questions  must  be  decided  by  the  application  of  fixed  and  im- 
mutable principles.  Jefferson  said:  "I  know  of  but  one  code  of 
morality  for  men,  whether  acting  singly  or  collectively" ;  and  Frank- 
lin expressed  the  same  idea,  only  in  different  language,  when  he 
said:  "Justice  is  as  strictly  due  between  neighbor  nations  as  be- 
tween neighbor  citizens.  The  highwayman  is  as  much  a  robber 
where  he  plunders  in  a  gang  as  when  single,  and  the  nation  that 
wages  an  unjust  war  is  only  a  great  gang." 

If  Jefferson  and  Franklin  were  right,  how  can  we  delude  ourselves 
with  the  doctrine  of  destiny  which  is  being  developed  now? 

Yielding  to  a  bad  principle  because  it  seems  triumphant  is  simply 
an  easy  method  of  avoiding  labor  and  sacrifice.  It  is  a  complacent 
but  unsound  philosophy,  which  teaches  compromise  with  wrong 
merely  because  the  enemy  is  strongly  entrenched. 

No  one  has  a  right  to  assume  that  error  will  be  permanently 
victorious.  If  some  of  our  citizens  condemn  small  crimes  but  seem 
inclined  to  condone  grand  larceny  and  killing  on  a  large  scale, 
Mr.  Watterson  should  remember  his  lecture  on  morals  and  point 
out  to  the  deluded  ones  that  a  nation  can,  no  more  than  an  indi- 
vidual, avoid  the  consequences  of  transgression.  If  he  believed 
the  authors  of  the  Constitution  and  "the  wisest  of  our  statesmen" 
wrong  he  would  be  justified  in  repudiating  their  counsels,  but  be- 
lieving them  right  it  is  surprising  that  he  should  be  carried  away 
by  the  brutal  and  barbarous  doctrine  upon  which  empires  are  built. 
His  influence  might  help  to  restore  American  ideals;  he  cannot 
afford  to  aid  in  their  overthrow. 

The  position  of  Mr.  Watterson  would  be  untenable,  even  if  the 


H2  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

issue  of  imperialism  had  been  the  only  issue  presented .  last  fall 
and  the  people  had  deliberately  endorsed  the  republican  policy. 
Suppose  the  campaign  of  1900  had  been  fought  with  no  other  ques- 
tion before  the  people,  even  then  it  would  still  be  the  duty  of  those 
who  are  conscientiously  opposed  to  imperialism  to  continue  the  dis- 
cussion, with  the  hope  of  convincing  a  majority  of  the  peo"ple.  But, 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  there  were  a  number  of  issues  in  the  campaign. 
While  imperialism  was  declared  by  the  democratic  convention  to  be 
paramount,  every  one  knows  that  other  questions  entered  into  the 
contest,  and  it  is  also  well  known  that  the  republican  party  con- 
stantly denied  that  it  had  any  thought  of  attacking  fundamental 
principles,  or  of  converting  a  republic  into  an  empire.  The  in- 
dictment  brought  against  the  republican  party  was  so  severe  that 
a  great  many  refused  to  believe  the  party  capable  of  such  intentions 
as  were  charged. 

Then,  too,  the  republicans  sought  cover  behind  the  fact  that  a 
war  was  in  progress.  They  circulated  misleading  reports  from  the 
Philippine  Islands,  and  declared  that  the  lives  of  American  soldiers 
were  imperiled  by  the  fact  that  the  democrats  were  criticising  the 
administration. 

What  the  democratic  party  needs  is  not  advice  to  surrender,  but 
courage  to  resist  the  attacks  which  are  being  made  upon  American 
doctrines  and  democratic  principles. 

The  campaign  of  1896  was  the  first  one  in  recent  years  when 
there  was  a  radical  issue  between  the  parties.  The  republican 
party  pretended  to  want  international  bimetallism,  when  it 
really  wanted  the  gold  standard.  It  won  its  victory  under 
the  cover  of  international  bimetallism  and  as  soon  as  the 
election  was  over,  threw  off  the  mask  and  came  out  for  the 
gold  standard.  Many  of  the  democratic  papers  which  had  sup- 
ported the  ticket,  and  all  of  the  democratic  papers  which  had  de- 
serted the  party  in  that  year,  counseled  the  party  to  accept  a 
decision,  won  by  fraud,  as  conclusive  of  the  question.  And  for  fcmr 
years  the  leading  democratic  dailies  gave  no  assistance  whatever  to 
the  democratic  party  in  its  fight  against  the  money  power. 

In  the  campaign  of  1900  the  republican  party  practiced  another 
fraud  upon  the  people  on  the  subject  of  imperialism,  and  now  Mr. 
Watterson  and  a  few  other  democratic  editors  advise  the  accept- 
ance of  the  republican  position  on  that  question. 

On  the  trust  question  the  republican  party  also  practiced  decep- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  113 

iion,  and  some  of  our  democratic  papers  seem  willing  to  concede 
the  triumph  of  the  trust  principle. 

Nothing  is  to  be  gained  from  a  party  standpoint,  and  everything 
is  to  be  lost  from  the  standpoint  of  principle  by  Mr.  Watterson's 
method  of  dealing  with  the  questions  at  issue.  He  expects  the 
democratic  party  to  endorse  the  colonial  system,  and  then  promise 
to  send  better  carpet-baggers  to  Manila  than  the  republicans  have 
sent.  Such  a  course  would  make  our  party  a  laughing  stock. 

No  party  is  good  enough  to  administer  a  colonial  system  honestly 
and  for  the  benefit  of  the  subjects.  A  nation  that  is  selfish  enough 
to  want  a  colony  is  too  selfish  to  do  justice  by  it,  and  a  party  de- 
moralized enough  to  endorse  a  colonial  system  would  be  impotent 
to  administer  it  satisfactorily. 

THE  COMMONER  is  pained  to  see  so  able  and  brilliant  an  editor 
as  Mr.  Watterson,  unconsciously  lend  his  influence  to  the  republican 
party.  Far  better  that  his  voice  should  command  a  charge  upon 
the  republican  strongholds  than  that  it  should  call  a  retreat  in  the 
midst  of  a  battle  which  must  determine,  not  only  the  fate  of  this 
republic,  but  the  fate  of  all  republics  for  years  to  come. 


THE  MONEY  QUESTION. 

A  Kansas  paper  has  inquired  why  the  editor  of  THE  COMMONER 
does  not  explain  the  failure  of  prices  to  fall,  as  predicted  by  the 
advocates  of  free  silver.  The  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  are  well 
enough  acquainted  with  the  money  question  to  know  that  the  quan- 
titative theory  is  the  basis  of  the  science  of  money.  Other  things 
being  equal,  the  value  of  the  dollar  depends  upon  the  number  of 
dollars — an  increase  in  the  volume  of  money  increasing  the  prices, 
and  a  decrease  in  the  volume  of  money  decreasing  prices.  This 
is  the  foundation  of  all  argument  made  in  behalf  of  bimetallism. 
For  twenty  years  the  price  level  fell,  and  during  that  time  the 
producers  of  wealth  and  the  debtors  throughout  the  world  suf- 
fered an  almost  incalculable  loss,  while  the  owners  of  money  and 
fixed  investments  enjoyed  an  enormous  advantage.  Silver  was 
struck  down  by  those  who  desired  a  dearer  dollar,  and  bimetallists 
were  called  advocates  of  silver,  because  they  favored  the  restora- 
tion of  silver  to  its  former  place  in  the  currency.  If  the  advocates 
of  dear  money  had  attacked  gold  instead  of  silver,  the  same  people 
who  favored  the  restoration  of  silver  would  have  formed  the  restora- 


H4  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

tion  of  gold.  On  one  side  of  the  question  stood  those  who  wanted, 
as  Mr.  McKinley  once  expressed  it,  to  make  "money  the  master, 
and  all  things  else  the  servant ;"  on  the  other  side  stood  those  who 
wanted  a  sufficient  volume  of  money  to  maintain  the  level  of  prices, 
and  the  free  and  unlimited  coinage  of  silver,  as  well  as  gold,  at 
the  present  legal  ratio  was  urged  as  a  means  to  this.  end. 

Since  1896  there  has  been  an  unexpected  increase  in  the  pro- 
duction of  gold,  and  this  increase,  which  the  republicans  neither 
promised  nor  desired,  has  brought,  in  part,  the  advantage  which 
the  restoration  of  bimetallism  would  have  brought  more  com- 
pletely. 

In  so  far  as  business  conditions  have  been  improved  by  the  in- 
creased production  of  gold,  bimetallists  have  been  vindicated.  If 
any  one  will  take  the  trouble  to  read  the  literature  circulated  by 
the  gold  standard  advocates  in  1896,  he  will  find  that  the  quanti- 
tative theory  of  money  was  denounced,  and  a  rising  dollar  eulo- 
gized. Xobody  eulogizes  a  dear  dollar  now,  but  the  advocates  of 
the  gold  standard  are  seeking  to  secure  credit  because  of  the  in- 
creased volume  of  money,  which  they  did  not  contemplate  and  did 
not  want. 

Business  conditions  have  not  been  normal  during  the  last  three 
years.  War  in  the  Philippines  and  in  South  Africa  has  operated 
to  raise  the  price  level, — first,  by  withdrawing  a  large  number  of 
men  from  the  labor  market ;  and  second,  by  increasing  the  demand 
for  provisions,  army  supplies  and  equipment  for  soldiers.  Na- 
tions have  been  mortgaging  the  future  to  secure  money  to  spend 
in  the  present. 

There  is  a  theoretical  advantage  in  the  double  standard,  but  the 
practical  necessity  for  it  has  been  based  upon  the  scarcity  of  gold. 
If  the  production  of  gold  increases  to  such  an  extent  as  to  furnish 
a  volume  of  money  which  will  keep  pace  with  population  and 
business,  the  restoration  of  bimetallism  will  not  be  necessary.  But 
if  such  a  condition  comes  it  will  be  more  gratifying  to  bimetal- 
lists  than  to  the  advocates  of  the  gold  standard,  for  bimetallists 
will  have  secured  that  which  they  desire,  namely,  a  stable  dollar, 
while  the  advocates  of  the  gold  standard  will  be  disappointed  be- 
cause of  the  disappearance  of  the  dear  dollar. 

Whether  this  increase  in  the  production  of  gold  will  be  sufficient 
to  maintain  the  level  of  prices,  is  a  question  which  no  one  is 
prepared  at  this  time  to  decide. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  115 

Not  all  of  the  annual  product  enters  into  the  currency.  A  very 
considerable  proportion  of  the  production  goes  into  the  arts  and 
some  gold  is  necessary  to  compensate  for  the  shrinkage  by  abrasion 
and  loss  of  coin.  No  one  can  say  with  certainty  just  how  much 
will  be  added  to  the  gold  coin  of  the  world  annually.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  a  large  addition  to  the  annual  supply  of  money 
is  necessary  to  keep  pace  with  population  and  industry.  In  1890, 
Senator  Sherman  made  a  speech  in  support  of  the  bill  which  bore 
his  name,  and  in  that  speech  he  argued  that  an  annual  addition 
of  more  than  fifty  million  of  dollars  was  then  necessary  in  this 
country  alone.  How  much  would  be  necessary  for  the  entire  world 
if  all  nations  adopted  the  gold  standard?  Then,  besides  furnish- 
ing the  necessary  annual  increase  there  would  have  to  be  enough1 
gold  to  replace  the  standard  silver  money  now  in  use  in  the  world, 
which  amounts  to  some  $4,000,000,000.  There  is  also  a  large 
quantity  of  uncovered  paper,  which  might  absorb  a  great  deal 
more. 

It  requires  a  period  of  years  to  measure  the  influence  of  the 
money  supply  on  prices.  All  that  any  one  can  say  now  is  that 
the  increased  production  of  gold  has  brought  a  measure  of  relief; 
no  one  can  say  that  it  will  be  found  entirely  adequate. 

Even  now  the  tendency  of  prices  is  downward  again,  and  nearly 
every  week  shows  a  greater  number  of  business  failures  than  the 
corresponding  week  of  last  year.  According  to  the  index  numbers 
of  the  London  Economist,  the  price  level  reached  the  highest  point 
in  March  of  1900,  and  remained  nearly  stationary  until  Septem- 
ber of  that  year.  Since  the  later  date  there  has  been  a  perceptible 
fall.  If  the  reaction  from  high  prices  continues  for  a  considerable 
period  it  will  be  proof  that  the  gold  supply  is  not  equal  to  the 
demand  made  upon  it,  and  the  necessity  for  bimetallism  will  again 
become  apparent. 

Whether  improved  conditions  will  force  the  money  question  into 
the  background  or  whether  less  favorable  conditions  will  give  it  a 
new  emphasis,  no  one  can  predict  with  certainty.  The  same  prin- 
ciple, however,  which  divided  the  people  upon  the  money  question 
will  divide  them  upon  a  number  of  other  questions,  and  those  who 
take  the  side  of  the  masses  on  the  money  question  will  take  the 
people's  side  on  other  questions  which  separate  the  wealth  pro- 
ducers from  those  who  seek  an  unearned  and  undeserved  advantage 
over  their  fellows. 


n6  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


A  BIT  PERSONAL. 

The  Springfield  (Massachusetts)  Republican,  in  a  recent  issue 
has  this  to  say : 

There  is  some  speculation  here  and  there  in  view  of  Mr.  Bryan's 
opposition  to  the  regular  democratic  candidate  for  mayor  of  St. 
Louis,  as  to  what  he  is  up  to.  Judging  from  a  letter  concerning  the 
St.  Louis  contest  which  he  wrote,  it  is  a  fair  presumption  that  Mr. 
Bryan  has  determined  to  make  the  stiffest  possible  warfare  against 
the  re-organization  of  the  democratic  party  by  the  Cleveland  demo- 
crats. In  the  letter  referred  to  he  expressly  stated  that  Wells  should 
be  defeated  because  his  election  would  encourage  every  so-called 
re-organizer  in  the  country.  Mr.  Bryan's  course  in  this  matter 
together  with  his  COMMONER  editorship  and  the  freedom  of  his 
editorial  writing,  would  indicate  that  another  democratic  presi- 
dential nomination  is  of  less  moment  to  him  than  the  defeat  of  the 
plans  of  the  conservatives  to  recapture  the  party.  It  is  probable  that 
Mr.  Bryan  has  no  expectation  of  being  nominated  again,  but  doubt- 
less he  intends  to  have  something  to  say  as  to  who  shall  be  nomi- 
nated and  as  to  the  principles  the  next  convention  shall  adopt.  An 
editorship  is  a  bad  place  for  a  candidate,  but  an  editorship  is  not 
so  bad  a  place  for  naming  candidates.  On  the  whole  Mr.  Bryan's 
present  attitude  is  distinctly  belligerent,  but  not  necessarily  bel- 
ligerent in  his  personal  behalf.  His  present  course  is  entirely  con- 
sistent with  a  determination  that  his  principles,  on  the  whole, 
shall  prevail. 

It  is  only  fair  that  the  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  should  know 
what  I  am  "up  to,"  and  if  they  will  pardon  me  for  being  a  little 
bit  personal  I  will  tell  them.  I  have  twice  received  at  the  hands 
of  my  party  the  highest  honor  it  can  bestow,  and  twice  has  my  nomi- 
nation been  endorsed  by  our  allies,  the  populists  and  silver  republi- 
cans. The  first  nomination  came  from  the  delegates  in  attendance 
upon  the  three  conventions,  the  second  nomination  came  directly 
from  the  voters  of  the  three  parties.  These  honors  were  bestowed, 
not  because  of  personal  merit,  or  as  a  personal  compliment,  but  be- 
cause of  my  advocacy  of  democratic  principles.  I  still  believe  in 
those  principles,  and  expect  to  advocate  them  during  the  remainder 
of  my  life.  New  issues  will  arise  from  time  to  time  but  the  prin- 
ciples set  forth  in  the  Chicago  platform  and  in  the  Kansas  City 
platform  are  fundamental,  and  can  be  applied  to  all  questions. 

I  am  not  planning  for  another  presidential  nomination — if  I 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  117 

were  I  would  not  be  editing  a  paper ;  if  I  ever  become  a  candidate 
again  it  will  be  because  it  seems  necessary  for  the  advancement  of 
the  principles  to  which  I  adhere,  and  that  does  not  now  seem  prob- 
able. I  shall,  however,  take  an  interest  in  politics  for  several  years 
yet,  if  I  live,  and  can  be  relied  upon  to  support  those  who  as  candi- 
dates advocate  democratic  principles,  and  who  can  be  trusted  to 
enforce  them  if  elected. 

I  have  no  enemies  to  punish.  No  matter  what  a  man  may  have 
said  or  done  against  the  ticket  in  1896  or  in  1900,  that  man  becomes 
my  friend  the  moment  he  accepts  democratic  principles.  Neither 
have  I  any  disposition  to  reward  political  friends  at  the  expense  of 
our  cause.  No  matter  what  a  man  may  have  said  or  done  for  the 
ticket  in  1896  or  in  1900,  that  man  becomes  an  opponent  the 
moment  he  turns  against  democratic  principles.  Political  battles 
are  fought,  not  in  the  past  or  in  the  future,  but  in  the  present.  The 
heretofore  cannot  be  recalled,  and  the  hereafter  cannot  be  antici- 
pated, but  the  NOW  is  all  important. 

I  shall  say  whatever  I  think  ought  to  be  said,  and  shall  write 
whatever  I  think  ought  to  be  written.  This  course  may  not  be 
popular,  but  I  trust  that  it  will  aid  in  the  restoration  of  Jeffer- 
sonian  principles. 

I  shall  ask  no  reward,  because  I  am  not  working  for  others  en- 
tirely.  As  a  citizen  I  am  interested  in  having  a  good  government 
under  which  to  live ;  as  a  father  I  am  interested  in  leaving  a  good 
government  to  my  children.  If  a  good  government  can  be  secured 
it  will  be  reward  enough  for  all  that  I  or  any  one  else  can  do. 


POLITICS  IN  BUSINESS. 

When  THE  COMMONER  was  ready  to  take  advertising,  a  card 
giving  rates  and  terms  was  sent  to  a  list  of  advertisers  published  in 
one  of  the  directories.  Among  the  answers  received  was  one  reading 
as  follows : 

Replying  to  yours  of  the  13th,  would  say  that  we  would  not  place 
an  advertisement  in  your  paper  if  it  cost  us  nothing.  We  do  not 
agree  with  the  principles  brought  forth  by  Mr.  Bryan  during  the 
last  campaign,  and  do  not  wish  to  do  anything  that  would  throw 
encouragement  or  assistance  in  his  way. 


n8  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  matter  is  referred  to  for  a  double  purpose.  First,  to  show 
the  readers  of  this  paper  the  disadvantages  under  which  one  labors 
who  attempts  to  protect  the  public  at  large  from  the  evils  of  private 
monopoly.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  advertiser  did  not  refer  to 
the  money  question,  which  was  the  paramount  issue  of  the  campaign 
of  1896,  but  to  the  principles  brought  forward  in  the  last  campaign, 
evidently  referring  to  the  democratic  platform  on  the  trust  ques- 
tion or  on  the  question  of  imperialism.  As  an  advertiser  would 
hardly  make  such  a  protest  against  the  principles  set  forth  in  the 
Declaration  of  Independence — for  they  were  the  principles  applied 
to  the  question  of  imperialism — it  is  probable  that  this  corpora- 
tion took  offense  at  the  effort  made  by  the  democratic  party  to  pre- 
vent the  organization  of  trusts.  It  is  hardly  possible  that  any  demo- 
cratic paper  will  be  led  to  compromise  with  wrong  merely  because 
the  wrong  doers,  or  the  supporters  of  wrong  doing,  threaten  to 
withhold  their  patronage.  But  those  who  are  interested  in  reform 
ought  to  know  the  means  resorted  to  by  our  opponents. 

The  second  reason  for  calling  attention  to  this  letter  is  that  it 
suggests  what  might  happen  if  voters  generally  were  as  illiberal  and 
as  partisan  as  some  of  the  so-called  business  men.  There  is  as  much 
reason  why  the  ordinary  citizen  should  refuse  to  patronize  a  store 
owned  by  a  political  opponent,  or  to  purchase  an  article  manu- 
factured by  one  differing  from  him  in  political  opinion,  as  there  is 
for  a  business  man  to  refuse  to  advertise  in  a  paper  which  antag- 
onizes his  views  on  public  questions.  Xo  principle  is  sound  which 
is  not  capable  of  general  application.  The  principle  adopted  by  the 
corporation  whose  letter  is  quoted  would  inject  strife  and  bitterness 
into  every  business  community. 

Bankers  have  sometimes  refused  loans  to,  or  threatened  to  with- 
draw loans  from,  persons  holding  opposite  political  views,  without 
seeming  to  realize  that  the  application  of  the  same  principle  by  de- 
positors would  bankrupt  the  institution. 

As  a  rule,  however,  men  mingle  together  in  business,  in  society, 
and  at  church  without  regard  to  their  political  opinions.  It  is  not 
because  they  lack  convictions,  but  because  they  have  a  proper  con- 
ception of  the  privileges  and  duties  of  citizenship,  and  recognize  the 
right  of  each  person  to  have  and  to  express  his  views  on  all  subjects. 
It  is  fortunate  that  narrowness  is  the  exception  rather  than  the  rule. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  119 


THE  REPRESENTATIVE'S  DUTY. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  has  asked  whether  a  representative 
should  give  expression  to  his  own  convictions  or  be  governed  by 
the  wishes  of  his  constituents.  There  are  two  theories  on  the 
subject.  The  first  is  that  the  people  think  for  themselves  and 
select  representatives  to  give  legislative  effect  to  their  wishes;  the 
other  theory  is  that  the  people  are  incapable  of  thinking  for  them- 
selves and  choose  representatives  to  do  the  thinking  for  the  rest  of 
the  people. 

The  former  is  the  democratic  theory.  There  is  more  intelligence 
and  integrity  among  the  people  than  ever  finds  expression  through 
representatives.  The  fact  that  constitutions  are  referred  to  the 
people  for  adoption  is  evidence  of  this,  as  is  also  the  fact  that  the 
voting  of  bonds,  the  selection  of  county  seats,  and  other  important 
matters  are  usually  decided  by  popular  vote.  The  fact  that  plat- 
forms are  adopted  by  party  conventions  is  conclusive  proof  that 
the  voters  have  a  right  to  know  the  candidate's  views  before  they 
vote  for  him. 

Accepting  this  theory  to  be  the  correct  one,  it  follows  that  a 
representative  has  no  moral  right  to  misrepresent  his  constituents. 
Upon  all  questions  covered  by  the  platform,  a  representative  is 
bound  by  the  platform.  A  public  official  who  secures  an  office 
without  intending  to  keep  the  platform  pledges  obtains  office  under 
false  pretenses,  and  certainly  to  obtain  an  office  by  such  means 
is  as  reprehensible  as  to  obtain  money  or  merchandise  in  that  way. 
As  a  rule  a  representative  is  elected  to  office  as  the  candidate  of 
a  party,  and  his  platform  applies  the  principles  of  the  party  to 
the  questions  then  before  the  public.  If  new  questions  arise  after 
the  election  the  representative  is  in  duty  bound  to  apply  to  them 
the  same  principles  applied  by  the  platform  to  other  questions.  If 
the  constituents  change  their  views  they  cannot  with  propriety 
demand  that  the  representative  change  his  convictions  during  this 
term,  but  if  the  representative  undergoes  a  change  of  opinion 
which  separates  him  from  his  constituents  upon  an  important  ques- 
tion, he  ought  to  resign.  A  representative  ought  to  speak  and  vote 
his  convictions,  but  when  his  convictions  are  so  altered  that  he 
CRnnot  conscientiously  carry  out  the  wishes  of  his  constituents,  he 
ought  to  give  way  to  some  one  who  is  in  harmony  with  the  con- 


I2O  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

stituency.  Sometimes  when  a  great  question  arises,  causing  new 
party  alignments,  the  representative  returns  to  his  people,  presents 
the  new  issue,  and  endeavors  to  convert  his  constituency  to  his 
way  of  thinking:  such  a  course  is  entirely  honorable  and  often 
successful. 

The  second  theory,  namely,  that  the  representative  should  act 
independently  of  the  wishes  of  his  constituents,  is  the  aristocratic 
one,  and  rests  upon  the  assumption  that  the  voters  are  not  com- 
petent to  think  out  and  decide  the  questions  which  concern  their 
own  welfare.  It  is  only  a  step  from  this  theory  to  the  doctrine 
that  the  people  should  not  be  allowed  to  vote. 

It  is  important  that  the  representative  himself  should  have  a 
proper  conception  of  his  relation  to  his  constituents.  Most  of  the 
corruption  that  finds  its  way  into  the  government  comes  from  the 
tendency  of  the  representative  to  regard  his  office  as  private  prop- 
erty rather  than  as  a  public  trust.  When  a  representative  decides 
that  he  is  not  bound  to  respect  the  wishes  of  his  constituents,  he 
is  on  the  down  grade,  and  usually  the  next  step  is  to  make  all 
the  money  he  can  out  of  the  office. 


A  LESSON  TO  ETJLERS. 

Lord  Macaulay,  in  his  history  of  England,  describes  the  growth 
of  trusts  and  monopolies  three  hundred  years  ago.  He  tells  how 
the  people  at  last  arose  and  demanded  redress,  and  how  the  queen, 
seeing  that  she  could  no  longer  resist  public  opinion,  gracefully 
yielded.  The  historian  points  to  her  example  as  a  lesson  to  rulers. 
In  the  hope  that  the  lesson  may  not  be  lost  upon  those  now  in  power, 
the  description  is  reproduced : 

It  was  in  the  Parliament  of  1601  that  the  opposition  which  had, 
during  forty  years,  been  silently  gathering  and  husbanding  strength 
fought  its  first  great  battle  and  won  its  first  victory.  The  ground 
was  well  chosen.  The  English  Sovereigns  had  always  been  en- 
trusted with  the  supreme  direction  of  commercial  police.  It  was 
their  undoubted  prerogative  to  regulate  coin,  weights  and  measures, 
and  to  appoint  fairs,  markets,  and  ports.  The  line  which  bounded 
their  authority  over  trade  had,  as  usual,  been  but  loosely  drawn. 
They  therefore,  as  usual,  encroached  on  the  province  which  right- 
fully belonged  to  the  legislature.  The  encroachment  was,  as  usual, 
patiently  borne,  till  it  became  serious.  But  at  length  the  Queen 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  121 

took  upon  herself  to  grant  patents  of  monopoly  by  scores.  There 
was  scarcely  a  family  in  the  realm  which  did  not  feel  itself  aggrieved 
by  the  oppression  and  extortion  which  this  abuse  naturally  caused. 
Iron,  oil,  vinegar,  coal,  saltpetre,  lead,  starch,  yarn,  skins,  leather, 
glass,  could  be  bought  only  at  exorbitant  prices.  The  House  of 
Commons  met  in  an  angry  and  determined  mood.  It  was  in  vain 
that  a  courtly  minority  blamed  the  Speaker  for  suffering  acts  of 
the  Queen's  Highness  to  be  called  in  question.  The  language  of 
the  discontented  party  was  high  and  menacing  and  was  echoed  by 
the  voice  of  the  whole  nation.  The  coach  of  the  chief  minister  of 
the  crown  was  surrounded  by  an  indignant  populace  who  cursed  the 
monopolies  and  exclaimed  that  the  prerogative  should  not  be  suf- 
fered to  touch  the  old  liberties  of  England.  There  seemed  for  a 
moment  to  be  some  danger  that  the  long  and  glorious  reign  of 
Elizabeth  would  have  a  shameful  and  disastrous  end.  She,  how- 
ever, with  admirable  judgment  and  temper,  declined  the  contest, 
put  herself  at  the  head  of  the  reforming  party,  redressed  the  griev- 
ance, thanked  the  Commons,  in  touching  and  dignified  language, 
for  their  tender  care  of  the  general  weal,  brought  back  to  herself 
the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  left  to  her  successors  a  memorable 
example  of  the  way  in  which  it  behooves  a  ruler  to  deal  with  public 
movements  which  he  has  not  the  means  of  resisting. 


PLAGIAEISM. 

The  charge  of  plagiarism  made  against  a  college  orator  in  a 
Missouri  contest  is  a  sad  reminder  of  the  fact  that  many  young 
men  have  brought  upon  themselves  an  odium  difficult  to  remove 
by  borrowing  the  language  of  others  without  giving  proper  credit. 
Doubtless  this  is  sometimes  explained  by  what  is  called  "uncon- 
scious cerebration,"  but  often  the  evidence  is  so  plain  that  it  is 
difficult  to  distinguish  the  borrowing  from  a  plain  case  of  stealing. 
As  the  wrongfulness  of  ordinary  larceny  does  not  depend  upon  the 
discovery  of  the  theft,  so  the  offense  of  plagiarism  is  the  same 
whether  it  is  found  out  or  not. 

The  object  of  an  oratorical  contest  is  to  test  the  ability  of  those 
who  participate  in  it,  and  not  to  ascertain  their  acquaintance 
with  the  speeches  of  others.  It  is  well  for  the  student  to  remem- 
ber that  integrity  is  even  more  important  than  genius,  and  in- 
finitely more  so  than  a  reputation  for  genius  built  upon  the  ability 
of  others.  The  possibilities  of  our  language  are  such  that  it  is  not 
necessary  for  one  person  to  express  himself  in  the  words  used  by 


122  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

another,  and  every  mind  is  so  different  from  every  other  that  a 
man  is  hampered  rather  than  aided  by  trying  to  say  something 
just  as  some  one  else  has  said  it.  The  object  of  education  is  to 
draw  out  and  develop  the  mind,  and  the  student  will  find  that  it 
is  not  only  the  part  of  honor,  but  the  part  of  wisdom  as  well,  to 
be  himself  and  no  one  else,  in  all  that  he  says  and  does.  A  speech 
to  be  successful  must  be  appropriate  to  the  occasion  of  its  delivery 
and  while  the  principles  set  forth  may  be  applicable  to  other  times 
and  other  places,  the  speech  itself  will  not  fit  into  any  other  occa- 
sion. The  young  man  will  find  it  to  his  advantage  to  read  and 
digest  what  others  have  written^but  that  which  bears  his  own  name 
should  be  as  distinct  from  that  which  he  has  read  as  the  flesh  is 
distinct  from  the  food  out  of  which  it  is  created. 


SENATOR  McLAURIN'S  BOLT. 

The  republican  papers  are  making  much  of  the  speech  recently 
delivered  by  Senator  McLaurin,  of  South  Carolina,  at  Charlotte, 
in  that  state.  And  well  they  may,  for  it  marks  the  beginning  of 
a  movement  in  the  south  which  will  have  an  influence  upon  the 
politics  of  the  nation.  It  is  not  likely  that  Mr.  McLaurin  will 
be  the  leader  of  the  movement  because  he  is  handicapped  by  the 
fact  that  he  is  using  his  official  position  to  misrepresent  the  views 
and  interests  of  his  constituents,  but  some  leader  will  arise  to  give 
direction  and  force  to  the  aristocratic  and  plutocratic  element  for 
which  Mr.  McLaurin  speaks.  There  is  such  an  element  in  every 
community,  and  now  that  ^he  race  question  no  longer  unifies  the 
white  people  of  the  southern  states,  it  will  doubtless  manifest  itself. 
Then,  too,  the  corporations  are  increasing  in  number  and  magni- 
tude in  the  south  and  with  their  growth  will  come  attempts  to 
secure  from  the  government  privileges,  favors  and  immunities. 
The  commercialism  which  has  debauched  municipal  and  state  gov- 
ernments in  the  north  will  soon  be  apparent  in  the  south  and  the 
senatorial  contests  which  thus  far  have  been  comparatively  free 
from  scandal  south  of  the  Mason  and  Dixon  line  will  show  the 
handiwork  of  organized  capital. 

Senator  Tillman  has  already  taken  up  the  gauge  of  battle  thrown 
down  by  Senator  McLaurin,  and  will  doubtless  be  able  to  marshal 
a  considerable  majority  in  that  state,  but  the  same  influences  are 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  123 

at  work  in  other  states  where  there  is  greater  danger  of  their 
success. 

Imperialism  gives  to  the  plutocrat  his  opportunity.  He  can  hide 
behind  a  pretended  patriotism  and  conceal  his  mercenary  purposes 
by  profuse  declamation  about  the  nation's  expanding  greatness  and 
international  obligations.  Those  who  are  willing  to  purchase  trade 
with  everybody's  blood  but  their  own  and  who  would  sell  any  politi- 
cal or  moral  principle  for  a  pecuniary  consideration  rush  to  defend 
the  administration's  Philippine  policy. 

The  democratic  sentiment  is  strong  enough  to  resist  and  overcome 
the  McLaurin  movement  but  those  who  believe  that  the  man  is 
more  important  than  the  dollar  will  have  to  bestir  themselves.  The 
corporations  are  not  much  on  public  meetings  but  they  are  diligent 
in  securing  delegates  to  conventions.  The  real  democrats,  confi- 
dent of  the  merits  of  their  cause,  often  lack  organization  and  are, 
therefore,  at  a  disadvantage.  Their  hope  lies  in  a  prompt,  open  and 
persistent  appeal  to  the  voters  at  the  primaries. 

A  white  republican  party  in  the  south  may  bring  some  compensa- 
tion in  that  it  is  likely  to  divide  the  colored  vote  in  the  north  and 
answer  the  argument  of  those  northern  republicans  who  have  been 
able  to  give  no  better  reason  for  remaining  with  their  party  than 
that  the  south  was  solidly  democratic. 


TOLSTOI'S  NOBLE  APPEAL. 

Count  Tolstoi  has  done  much  for  humanity.  He  has  been  an 
heroic  figure  in  his  time,  and  although  he  has  been  excommunicated 
by  his  church  and  exiled  by  his  country,  he  will  live  in  history  as 
one  of  the  greatest  of  men.  Tolstoi's  most  recent  notable  action 
was  to  address  a  letter  to  the  Czar  of  Eussia  in  which  the  great 
humanitarian  made  this  striking  appeal: 

Why  will  you  fight  with  what  you  can  never  subdue  by  force, 
instead  of  covering  your  name  with  imperishable  fame  by  treading 
the  way  of  justice  ?  You  protect  injustice,  sire. 

Free  the  peasant  from  the  brutal  tyranny  of  the  officials;  give 
him  equal  rights  with  other  ranks;  do  away  with  the  present 
police  system,  which  demoralizes  society,  degrades  the  empire 
and  breeds  spies  and  informers.  Do  away  with  the  restraints  on 
education,  so  that  the  road  to  enlightenment  may  lie  open  to  all. 


124  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Prohibit  no  man  from  having  his  free  belief,  and  let  religious 
persecution  cease. 

It  is  indeed  strange  that  the  monarch  who  has  taken  so  pro- 
nounced a  stand  in  favor  of  peace  as  the  Czar  of  Russia  has  should 
neglect  the  opportunity  suggested  by  Tolstoi.  It  is  strange  that  this 
monarch  has  not  exerted  himself  in  the  direction  of  making  his 
own  subjects  happy.  As  Tolstoi  says,  the  Czar  of  Eussia  has  an 
opportunity  to  cover  himself  with  imperishable  fame  if  he  will 
but  do  those  things  which  will  best  contribute  to  the  happiness  of 
his  people.  What,  indeed,  is  the  prestige  of  a  crown  that  depends 
solely  upon  the  sword  for  its  existence?  How  much  greater,  how 
much  happier,  is  the  monarch  whose  authority  and  power  do  not 
depend  upon  the  bayonet,  but  whose  government  is  supported  be- 
cause of  the  happiness  and  the  contentment  of  the  people  over 
whom  he  rules. 


AN  EXECUTIVE  DUTY. 

Sometime  ago  the  federal  court  at  New  Orleans  was  asked  for 
an  injunction  to  prevent  further  shipments  of  horses  and  mules  to 
the  British  troops  in  South  Africa.  This  judicial  proceeding  was 
considered  at  a  meeting  of  the  cabinet,  and  the  dispatches  say  that 
the  cabinet  took  the  position  that  the  courts  have  no  jurisdiction  in 
matters  affecting  the  international  policies  of  the  government.  The 
members  of  the  cabinet  agreed  that  inasmuch  as  the  New  Orleans 
case  involved  neutrality  the  judiciary  was  without  jurisdiction,  and 
that  the  executive  should  enjoy  a  monopoly  of  authority  in  the 
premises. 

It  will  occur  to  a  great  many  people  that  the  administration  is 
very  sensitive  on  any  point  that  may  appear  to  the  disadvantage 
of  the  British  Empire  and  to  the  advantage  of  the  South  African 
Eepublics. 

The  claim  that  in  such  cases  the  judiciary  has  no  authority  is 
not  sound  nor  in  keeping  with  well  settled  practice. 

During  the  administration  of  Benjamin  Harrison,  while  civil 
war  was  pending  in  Chili,  the  United  States  Court  at  San  Diego, 
California,  issued  a  writ  for  the  seizure  of  a  vessel  that  had  been 
loaded  with  munitions  of  war,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  engaged 
in  the  violation  of  the  neutrality  laws.  While  this  vessel  was  in 
the  custody  of  a  United  States  Marshal  it  was  forcibly  wrested 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  125 

from  his  control  and  put  to  sea.  Our  government  made  a  demand 
upon  the  Chilian  government  that  this  vessel  and  its  cargo  be 
returned  to  the  officers  of  the  court,  and  this  demand  was  recog- 
nized. In  his  message  to  Congress,  President  Harrison,  referring 
to  this  point,  said :  "It  would  have  been  inconsistent  with  the  dig- 
nity and  self-respect  of  this  government  not  to  have  insisted  that 
the  Itata  should  be  returned  to  San  Diego  to  abide  the  judgment 
of  the  court."  Is  it  not  clear  here  that  Benjamin  Harrison,  who 
stood  high  among  the  lawyers  of  the  country,  did  not  entertain  the 
notion  that  in  the  interpretation  of  the  neutrality  laws  the  judiciary 
was  without  authority  and  that  the  executive  alone  had  jurisdiction  ? 
In  the  same  message  President  Harrison  referred  to  a  trial  in 
the  federal  court  of  California  which  resulted  in  a  decision  holding 
that  inasmuch  as  one  of  the  contestants  in  a  war  had  not  been  recog- 
nized as  a  belligerent,  the  acts  done  in  its  interest  could  not  be  a 
violation  of  our  neutrality  laws.  "From  this  judgment,"  said  Presi- 
dent Harrison,  "the  United  States  has  appealed  that  we  may  know 
what  the  present  state  of  our  law  is ;  for  if  this  construction  of  the 
statute  is  correct,  there  is  obvious  necessity  for  revision  and  amend- 
ment." If  this  was  a  matter  of  purely  executive  authority  the 
government  would  not  have  appealed.  A  cabinet  meeting  would 
have  been  held  and  notice  would  have  been  served  upon  the  federal 
court  that  in  attempting  to  interpret  the  laws,  the  judiciary  was 
trespassing  upon  the  right  of  the  executive  branch  of  the  govern- 
ment, a  branch  which  according  to  old  fashioned  notions  was  de- 
signed for  the  execution  rather  than  the  interpretation  of  laws. 
But  President  Harrison,  it  will  be  observed,  said  that  an  appeal 
was  taken  "That  we  may  know  what  the  present  state  of  our  law 
is."  There  we  have  very  clearly  stated  Benjamin  Harrison's  idea 
that  when  any  doubt  existed  concerning  a  law,  the  judiciary  must 
determine  it;  the  judiciary  was  the  branch  of  government  which 
was  to  interpret  law.  But  Benjamin  Harrison  was  educated  in  the 
old  fashioned  school  of  law  as  well  as  in  the  old  fashioned  school 
of  statesmanship.  He  had  not  learned  that  in  this  government  the 
executive  is  the  single  power  before  which  all  other  powers  must 
bow.  He  had  not  learned  that  the  mandate  of  men  in  executive 
positions  is  potent  irrespective  of  the  equities  of  the  situation. 


126  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


VII. 
GAMBLING,  GEEAT  AND  SMALL. 

The  following  press  dispatches  illustrate  the  point  which  THE 
COMMONER  desires  to  make : 

LE  MARS,  IAV  April  17. — The  Le  Mars  National  bank  did  not 
open  this  morning.  Thomas  F.  Ward,  vice-president  and  manager 
of  the  institution,  is  a  self-confessed  embezzler  to  an  amount  of 
from  $25,000  to  $30,000.  He  has  also  absconded.  Ward  departed 
Monday  night  and  yesterday  Cashier  Frank  Koob  received  a  letter 
from  Ward  saying : 

'<DEAR  FRANK  :  I  leave  to-night  for  God  Almighty  knows  where. 
This  board  of  trade  business  has  ruined  me.  Save  me  from  in- 
dictment if  you  can.  I  will  pay  back  every  cent  I  can." 

Then  the  writer  explained  the  funds  from  which  he  has  been 
stealing  to  cover  his  losses. 

VANCOUVER, WASH.,  April  21. — Crushed  by  the  disgrace  of  their 
exposure  President  Charles  Brown  and  Cashier  E.  L.  Canby  of  the 
First  National  bank,  which  was  closed  yesterday,  decided  to  end 
their  troubles  in  death.  As  soon  as  the  shortage  was  discovered 
Brown  and  Canby  fled.  It  was  believed  that  they  were  in  hiding 
somewhere  near  town,  as  there  had  been  no  train  on  which  they 
could  have  left.  A  posse  of  angry  depositors  searched  all  night 
for  the  missing  bankers,  and  if  they  had  been  found  there  might 
have  been  a  double  lynching.  But  the  fugitives  spared  their  victims 
the  trouble  of  taking  their  lives. 

Soon  after  daylight  this  morning  a  little  party  of  the  searchers 
directed  their  attention  to  a  clump  of  woods  two  miles  north  of 
town. 

In  the  center  of  the  wood  is  a  little  clearing,  and  here  the  man 
hunt  came  to  an  end.  Lying  on  the  ground  before  them  the  men 
who  had  sought  their  capture  saw  the  dead  bodies  of  Brown  and 
Canby.  Both  had  used  the  same  weapon  and  Canby  had  evidently 
died  first,  as  the  revolver  was  found  in  Brown's  hand.  It  is  evi- 
dent that  Canby  put  the  muzzle  of  the  revolver  in  his  mouth  and 
then  blew  the  top  of  his  head  off.  Brown  then  took  it  and  shot 
himself  in  exactly  the  same  way,  falling  over  Canby's  body. 

Friday  evening,  Canby,  upon  being  told  by  Bank  Examiner  J.  W. 
Maxwell  that  the  bank  would  not  be  permitted  to  open  Saturday, 
went  out  in  the  yard  behind  the  bank  and  attempted  to  shoot 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  127 

himself.  His  revolver  failed  to  explode,  although  all  five  chambers 
were  loaded.  After  failing  to  shoot  himself,  Canby  went  back 
into  the  bank  and  he  and  President  Brown  left  together  later, 
taking  his  revolver.  When  Examiner  Maxwell  confronted  the  bank 
officials  with  the  shortage  of  $81,000  which  he  had  discovered  both 
men  admitted  their  guilt.  It  is  said  that  Brown  and  Canby  had 
been  speculating  in  stocks. 

Besides  Brown's  body  there  was  found  a  package  containing  $25 
and  a  note  saying  that  the  money  belonged  to  his  daughter.  Upon 
Canby's  body  the  following  brief  note  was  found : 

"Dear  Wife :  I  feel  what  I  am  about  to  do  is  for  the  best.  For- 
give me  if  you  can  and  try  to  live  for  our  dear  children.  God 
bless  you  all.  Good-by.  NED. 

"April  19." 

These  dispatches,  showing  how  trusted  business  men  were  led 
from  the  path  of  honesty  to  crime,  disgrace  and,  in  two  cases,  death, 
suggest  a  contrast. 

Ever  and  anon  a  crusade  against  vice  is  undertaken  in  New 
York  and  other  large  cities.  Attempts  are  made  to  close  the 
gambling  dens  and  eloquent  sermons  are  preached  in  denunciation 
of  games  of  chance.  Sometimes  the  crusades  are  led  by  ministers 
and  there  is  no  question  that  these  ministers  would  immediately 
secure  the  expulsion  from  their  churches  of  any  person  convicted 
of  running  a  gambling  place  or  of  frequenting  one.  This  is  good 
as  far  as  it  goes,  but  it  does  not  go  far  enough. 

Tell  one  of  these  crusaders  that  a  young  man  who  has,  by  the 
exercise  of  industry  and  economy,  saved  up  five  hundred  dollars, 
has  been  enticed  into  a  gambling  place  and  has  there  lost  his  little 
fortune,  and  no  language  will  be  sufficiently  severe  to  condemn 
the  folly  of  the  young  man,  the  crime  of  the  keeper  of  the  house 
and  the  wickedness  of  the  officials  who  permit  such  an  establish- 
ment to  exist. 

But  change  the  details  of  the  picture;  tell  the  crusader  that  it 
was  a  middle  aged  man  instead  of  a  youth,  that  the  amount  lost 
was  fifty  thousand  dollars  instead  of  five  hundred,  that  the  specu- 
lator used  trust  money  and  that  the  gambling  was  done  on  the 
board  of  trade  or  the  stock  exchange — and  what  will  be  the  re- 
ply ?  Will  the  crusader  denounce  the  board  of  trade  and  the  stock 
exchange  and  condemn  the  officials  who  permit  them  to  exist? 
And  yet  the  ordinary  games  of  chance  are  innocent  amusement 
in  comparison  with  the  greater  games  played  where  cliques,  corners 


128  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

and  false  rumors  affect  the  market  and  drive  prices  up  or  down 
to  suit  the  purpose  of  those  in  control. 

No  one  will  undertake  to  defend  gambling  from  a  moral  or  an 
economic  standpoint,  but  why  do  the  crusaders  exhaust  their  en- 
ergy upon  the  petty  offenders  and  remain  silent  in  the  presence 
of  big  gamblers  who,  besides  bringing  ruin  to  thousands,  lend  a 
sort  of  respectability  to  schemes  for  obtaining  something  for  noth- 
ing? 

The  total  amount  of  money  lost  at  the  card  table,  the  wheel 
of  fortune  and  other  games  which  are  declared  to  be  illegal  is 
insignificant  in  comparison  with  the  amount  lost  in  speculation  on 
the  boards  of  trade  and  stock  exchanges.  Then,  too,  in  small 
gambling,  the  parties  to  the  games  and  their  immediate  families 
are  usually  the  only  ones  pecuniarily  affected,  while  speculation 
upon  the  market  injures  the  producers,  consumers  and  legitimate 
dealers  who  try  to  conduct  their  business  honestly  and  who  them- 
selves do  not  deal  in  futures  or  options. 

If  the  ministers  who  discourse  eloquently  on  sin  in  the  slums 
of  the  cities  will  arraign  the  speculating  pew  holders,  they  will 
find  it  easier  to  cure  the  more  hideous  but  less  harmful  kinds  of 
gambling. 

If  the  educators  who  have  faith  in  the  power  of  public  opinion 
to  remedy  evil  will  endeavor  to  create  a  sentiment  against 
gambling  in  stocks  and  grain  and  produce,  they  will  find  it  easier 
to  prevent  gambling  among  their  students.  The  mania  for  mak- 
ing a  fortune  in  short  order  is  corrupting  society  and  undermining 
the  business  integrity  as  well  as  the  morality  of  many  communi- 
ties. 


WHEX  HAKMONY  IS  POSSIBLE. 

There  is  no  word  more  pleasant  to  the  ear  than  "harmony"; 
there  is  no  condition  more  delightful  to  contemplate  or  to  enjoy 
than  "harmony" ;  and  there  is  no  phrase  more  shamefully  abused 
than  "harmony." 

Just  now  some  men  who  were  formerly  democrats  are  pleading 
loudly  for  "harmony"  and  they  offer  to  deliver  their  particular 
and  peculiar  brand  of  "harmony"  postpaid  to  any  part  of  the 
country — west  and  south  preferred.  Their  promises  and  guaran- 
tees read  like  the  advertisement  of  a  sorceress.  "Estranged  friends 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  129 

reconciled,  waning  love  revived,  obstacles  to  reunion  removed,  lost 
property  found  and  a  happy  and  prosperous  life  ensured." — This 
is  but  a  partial  catalogue  of  the  good  things  held  out  by  the 
soothsayers  who  ply  their  avocation  under  the  guise  of  re-organ- 
izers. 

No  one  should  be  deceived  by  this  pretended  desire  for  harmony. 
No  process  has  ever  been  discovered  for  welding  together  into  one 
harmonious  party  men  who  differ  in  conviction  and  desire  the  tri- 
umph of  opposite  principles.  There  can  be  no  difference  of  opinion 
among  intelligent  and  honest  men  as  to  the  basis  of  real  or  perma- 
nent harmony. 

In  Webster's  dictionary  harmony  is  defined  as  "concord  and  agree- 
ment in  facts,  opinions,  manners,  interests,  etc."  This  is  the  only 
foundation  upon  which  useful  or  enduring  harmony  can  rest. 

There  was  harmony  in  the  democratic  party  until  1892.  In  that 
year  Mr.  Cleveland  ran  for  president  upon  a  platform  which  was 
clear  and  definite  on  the  tariff  question,  but  ambiguous  on  the 
money  question.  One  part  of  the  platform  was  emphasized  in  the 
east  and  another  part  in  the  south,  while  in  the  west  the  democrats 
were  advised  by  the  democratic  national  committee  to  vote  the  popu- 
list ticket  in  order  to  defeat  the  republican  electors  in  states  where 
the  democrats  were  known  to  be  in  the  minority.  Following  these 
instructions  the  democrats  helped  to  carry  Kansas,  Colorado,  Idaho 
and  Nevada  for  the  populist  candidates  and  almost  carried  the  state 
of  Nebraska. 

When  Mr.  Cleveland  took  his  seat  he  surrounded  himself  with  a 
cabinet  composed  of  men  who,  on  the  money  question,  dissented 
from  the  views  of  the  majority  of  the  democrats  who  voted  for 
him.  Instead  of  calling  Congress  together  to  consider  the  tariff 
question  which  had  been  made  the  paramount  issue  and  about 
which  nearly  all  democrats  agreed,  he  waited  until  summer  and 
then  convened  Congress  in  extraordinary  session  to  consider  a  finan- 
cial measure  proposed  by  Senator  John  Sherman  a  year  before- 
This  measure  was  forced  through  Congress  by  a  disgraceful  use 
of  patronage,  and  received  the  support  of  a  larger  percentage  of 
the  republican  congressmen.  Soon  afterwards  a  bill  was  passed  to 
coin  the  seigniorage — a  bill  which  was  supported  by  a  majority  of 
the  democrats  and  opposed  by  a  majority  of  the  republicans.  Mr. 
Cleveland  vetoed  this  bill  at  the  demand  of  New  York  financiers. 

A  little  later  he  made  a  contract  with  the  Eothschild-Morgan 


130  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

syndicate  for  the  sale  of  gold  bonds  and  then  asked  Congress  to 
ratify  the  contract,  but  a  democratic  congress  refused  to  do  it. 
Then  came  the  election  of  1894  which  gave  the  republicans  a  ma- 
jority of  over  one  hundred  and  forty  in  Congress.  To  understand 
the  change  which  took  place  in  two  years  (and  that,  too,  before  the 
party  standard  was  placed  "in  unfamiliar  hands,"  as  Mr.  Cleveland 
would  say)  it  is  only  necessary  to  remember  that  the  democrats  had 
a  majority  of  ninety-two  in  the  preceding  Congress.  In  this  new 
Congress,  elected  in  '94,  New  York  had  only  six  democrats,  Penn- 
sylvania two,  Ohio  two,  Illinois  one,  and  Indiana  none. 

At  that  election  the  republicans  carried  eleven  of  the  fifteen 
districts  of  Missouri  and  Mr.  Hill  was  defeated  for  Governor  in 
New  York  by  156,108. 

Of  the  twenty-nine  senators  whose  terms  began  the  following 
March  eighteen  were  republicans,  ten  were  democrats  and  one  a 
populist. 

In  the  spring  of  1895  it  became  apparent  that  the  next  national 
convention  would  have  to  deal  with  the  money  question.  On  April 
13,  Mr.  Cleveland  wrote  a  letter  to  a  Sound  Money  League  in 
Chicago  defending  his  own  financial  views  and  opposing  those  which 
he  knew  to  be  entertained  by  a  majority  of  his  party.  Xear  the 
conclusion  of  the  letter  he  said :  "Disguise  it  as  we  may,  the  line  of 
battle  is  drawn  between  the  forces  of  safe  currency  and  those  of 
silver  monometallism/'  The  following  month,  Mr.  Carlisle,  then 
secretary  of  the  treasury,  went  to  Memphis  and  attempted  to  or- 
ganize the  southern  democracy  in  support  of  the  president's  posi- 
tion. 

In  June  of  that  year  the  democrats  who  favored  bimetallism  sent 
delegates  to  a  meeting  at  Memphis  and  at  that  meeting  the  national 
Silver  Committee  was  appointed.  Then  followed  a  contest  of  a 
year's  duration  between  the  gold  element  on  the  one  side,  led  by 
the  administration  and  supported  by  the  banks,  railroads  and 
most  of  the  daily  papers,  and  on  the  other  side  the  bimetallic 
element,  led  by  the  silver  committee.  The  battle  was  fought  out 
at  the  primaries  and  the  administration,  in  spite  of  its  powerful 
allies,  lost. 

When  the  convention  met,  about  two-thirds  of  the  delegates 
were  under  instructions  to  vote  for  a  platform  favoring  the  free 
coinage  of  gold  and  silver  at  sixteen  to  one,  and  yet,  notwith- 
standing this  well-known  fact,  the  administration  forces,  under 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  131 

the  direction  of  Mr.  Whitney,  tried  to  induce  the  delegates  to  violate 
their  instructions  and  betray  their  constituents. 

The  minority  opposed  the  money  plank  of  the  platform  and 
offered  a  substitute  favoring  international  bimetallism.  A  few 
weeks  later  the  same  men  met  at  Indianapolis  and,  forgetting  all 
about  international  bimetallism,  declared  for  the  gold  standard 
and  nominated  a  separate  ticket.  Then  forgetting  all  about  the 
ticket  which  they  had  nominated,  they  for  the  most  part  voted 
the  republican  ticket.  During  the  campaign  every  conceivable 
fraud  was  resorted  to.  Wherever  a  republican  court  would  aid 
them  (as  in  Nebraska)  they  had  the  bolting  electors  put  on  the 
ticket  as  "democrats"  to  deceive  the  voters. 

The  Palmer  and  Buckner  ticket  carried  just  one  precinct  in  the 
United  States,  and  yet  the  men  who  put  that  ticket  in  the  field 
volunteer  as  leaders  of  the  democratic  party  and  promise  to  win 
a  glorious  victory. 

They  do  not  seem  to  think  it  necessary  to  discuss  the  principles 
which  the  platform  shall  contain  or  to  suggest  any  remedy  for  ex- 
isting ills. 

When  the  election  of  1896  was  over,  the  leading  gold  democrats 
of  the  nation  met  at  the  Waldorf  Hotel,  boasted  of  their  opposition 
to  the  democratic  ticket  and  claimed  credit  for  the  election  of  a 
republican  president. 

After  four  years  of  republican  administration,  marked  by  high 
tariff  legislation  which  the  gold  democrats  always  professed  to 
abhor,  marked  by  trust  domination  which  the  gold  democrats 
always  pretended  to  dislike  and  characterized  by  imperialistic  ten- 
dencies against  which  the  leading  gold  democrats  loudly  pro- 
tested, another  national  campaign  was  fought.  Some  of  the  men 
who  left  the  party  in  '96  returned  in  1900,  and  were  warmly 
welcomed,  but  a  majority  of  the  prominent  gold  democrats  sup- 
ported the  republican  ticket  again  last  year,  proving  either  that 
they  regard  the  money  question  as  more  important  than  industrial 
independence,  which  is  attacked  by  the  trust,  and  the  declaration 
of  independence,  which  is  attacked  by  imperialism,  or  else  that 
the  same  principles  which  led  them  to  support  the  financial 
policy  of  the  republican  party  also  led  them  to  support  the  other 
policies  of  that  party, 

The  election  of  1900  resulted  in  a  second  defeat  more  pro- 


132  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

nouuccd  than  that  of  1896,  hut  not  as  overwhelming  as  the  defeat 
of  1894. 

Now  the  men  who  were  responsible  for  two  national  defeats  are 
talking  about  harmony  and  offering  to  guarantee  success,  provided 
the  party  will  follow  the  instructions  which  they  give.  And  what 
are  the  conditions? 

First,  That  the  party  shall  abandon  the  doctrines  set  forth  in 
the  platform  of  1896,  reaffirmed  by  nearly  every  democratic  state 
convention  in  1900,  and  reiterated  by  the  national  convention 
of  that  year. 

Second,  That  it  shall  drive  away  the  populists  and  silver  re- 
publicans who  came  to  the  support  of  the  democratic  ticket  when 
the  gold  democrats  went  over  to  the  enemy. 

These  conditions  are  impossible  ones.  The  men  who  make  these 
demands  would  not  feel  at  home  in  any  democratic  party  worthy 
of  the  name,  and  they  would  not  only  drive  democrats  out  of  the 
party,  but  would  repel  allies  and  keep  young  men  with  democratic 
inclination  from  coming  into  the  party.  Whether  circumstances 
reduce  or  increase  the  importance  of  the  silver  question,  the  same 
principles  are  involved  in  other  phases  of  the  money  question,  in 
the  question  of  monopoly  and,  in  fact,  in  all  the  other  questions 
now  before  the  country. 

The  harmonizing  of  personal  differences  is  an  easy  matter. 

Mr.  Cleveland  and  Mr.  Hill  were  thought  to  be  personal  enemies, 
but  the  money  question  brought  them  together,  and  at  the  Chicago 
convention  the  latter  offered  the  resolution  endorsing  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  former.  Mr.  Hanna  and  Mr.  Foraker  are  supposed 
to  be  personally  unfriendly,  but  they  act  together  when  the  roll  is 
called.  The  harmonizing  of  radical  differences  of  opinion  be- 
tween conscientious  men  is,  however,  more  difficult. 

Reconciliation  between  the  two  elements  of  the  democratic 
party  must  be  brought  about,  if  at  all,  in  one  of  two  ways: 
First,  by  such  a  change  of  opinion  in  either  element  as  will  pro- 
duce "concord  or  agreement." 

The  minority  denies  that  it  has  changed  and  there  is  no  evi- 
dence of  change  in  the  majority. 

Second,  the  two  elements  might  be  brought  together  by  some 
question  of  sufficient  importance  to  overshadow  the  questions 
about  which  they  differ.  But  in  such  case  the  platform  must 
represent  the  views  of  the  majority  on  minor  questions.  When 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  133 

the  gold  democrats  supported  the  republican  ticket  in  '96  they  did 
so  on  account  of  the  money  question  and  were  willing  to  over- 
look the  tariff  plank  in  the  republican  platform.  So,  in  1900, 
some  of  the  most  loyal  and  earnest  supporters  of  the  democratic 
ticket  were  republicans  who  were  opposed  to  imperialism  and  who 
were  willing  to  overlook  differences  on  minor  questions. 

The  struggle  between  plutocracy  and  democracy  must  be  fought 
out,  and  the  democratic  party  must  take  one  side  or  the  other. 
There  is  no  middle  ground.  If  those  who  have  opposed  the  party 
in  recent  years  are  willing  to  take  the  democratic  side  in  this 
fight  there  will  be  no  difficulty  in  "getting  together"  and  there 
will  be  no  lack  of  harmony.  If,  however,  the  men  who  have  been 
voting  the  republican  ticket  expect  to  come  back  and  convert  the 
democratic  party  into  a  plutocratic  party,  to  be  run  along  republi- 
can lines  and  according  to  republican  methods,  they  will  have  to 
announce  their  platform  and  make  the  issue  at  the  primaries. 
The  six  million  and  more  voters  who  supported  the  ticket  will 
not  be  led  into  the  republican  party  without  a  struggle.  There 
is  no  sense  in  inviting  an  opponent  into  your  house  to  see  which 
can  put  the  other  out,  and  those  who  remain  faithful  have  a 
right  to  know  whether  the  re-organizers  come  as  friends  or  as 
enemies. 

The  objection  to  the  re-organizers  is  not  based  so  much  upon 
what  they  have  done  as  upon  what  they  are  doing  and  propose 
to  do,  if  they  obtain  control  of  the  party. 


BEAVO!  JUDGE  THOMPSON. 

On  another  page  will  be  found  a  synopsis  of  the  opinion  de- 
livered by  Judge  Owen  P.  Thompson,  of  Jacksonville,  111.,  in  the 
suit  brought  at  Springfield,  against  the  state  board  of  equalization 
to  compel  the  assessment  of  some  Chicago  corporations  which  were 
almost  entirely  escaping  taxation.  Enough  of  the  opinion  is  given 
to  show  the  facts  as  they  were  brought  out  at  the  trial,  the  conduct 
of  respondents  and  the  reasoning  upon  which  the  decision  was 
based. 

It  was  fortunate  for  the  tax-payers  of  Chicago  that  the  case 
was  tried  before  a  brave  and  honest  judge,  one  who  could  not 
be  awed  or  influenced  by  the  great  corporations  which  were  shirk- 


134  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

ing  their  duty,  and  throwing  upon  others  the  burdens  which  they 
themselves  ought  to  bear.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  daily  papers 
which  report  with  fidelity  the  small  stealings  by  obscure  persons 
will  give  due  attention  to  this  suit  which  involves  $235,000,000 
withheld  from  assessment  by  well-known  corporations. 

Solomon  Simon  seems  to  have  been  the  only  member  of  the 
Board  of  Equalization  who  tried  to  protect  the  plain  every-day 
citizens. 

Long  life  and  health  to  Judge  Thompson  and  Solomon  Simon ! 


ROOSEVELT  ON  DUTY. 

The  Vice-President  delivered  a  speech  a  few  nights  ago  before 
the  Home  Market  Club  of  Boston.  A  perusal -of  his  remarks 
convinces  one  that  he  shares  with  the  President  the  tendency  to 
apply  the  term  "duty"  to  those  things  which  he  desires.  He  says: 

For  good  or  for  evil  we  now  find  ourselves  with  new  DUTIES 
in  the  West  Indies  and  new  DUTIES  beyond  the  Pacific.  We 
cannot  escape  the  performance  of  these  DUTIES.  All  we  can 
decide  for  ourselves  is  whether  we  shall  do  them  well  or  ill. 

The  fact  that  these  "duties"  were  self-imposed  and  are  clung 
to  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  they  involve  a  violation  of  American 
principles,  cuts  no  figure.  It  is  all  in  the  definition  of  duty. 
According  to  republican  logic  it  is  very  wrong  to  steal  unless 
you  find  something  which  is  very  valuable — then  larceny  becomes 
a  duty.  The  fact  that  you  may  be  compelled  to  take  human  life 
in  order  to  get  the  thing  desired  is  immaterial — call  it  duty  and 
sin  becomes  a  virtue. 

A  little  later  on  in  his  speech  the  real  secret  of  the  Philippine 
policy  leaks  out.  Mr.  Roosevelt  says: 

In  developing  these  islands  it  is  well  to  keep  steadily  in  mind 
that"  business  is  one  of  the  great  levers  of  civilization.  It  is 
immensely  to  the  interest  of  the  people  of  the  islands  that  their 
resources  should  be  developed,  and  therefore  it  is  to  their  interest 
even  more  than  to  ours  that  our  citizens  should  develop  their  in- 
dustries. The  further  fact  that  it  is  our  duty  to  see  that  the 
development  takes  place  under  conditions  so  carefully  guarded 
that  no  wrong  may  come  to  the  islanders,  must  not  blind  us  to 
the  first  great  fact,  which  is  the  need  of  development. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  135 

The  reasoning  is  complete.  Business  is  a  civilizer;  the  Filipinos 
need  civilizing,  and  we  are  nothing  if  not  business-like.  There- 
fore, it  is  to  the  interest  of  the  Filipinos  that  we  should  develop 
them  for  their  good.  This  is  strenuous  life,  and  lest  some  might 
be  restrained  by  conscientious  scruples,  the  Yice-President  felt 
it  necessary  to  impress  upon  his  hearers  that  "the  first  great  fact" 
is  the  "need  of  development."  The  "duty  to  see  that  the  develop- 
ment takes  place  under  conditions  so  carefully  guarded  that  no 
wrong  may  come  to  the  islanders"  is  simply  a  "further  fact"- 
not  "the  first  great  fact" — and,  "must  not  bind  us"  to  the  princi- 
pal thing — "the  need  of  development." 

Xowhere  does  Mr.  Koosevelt  discuss  the  effect  of  the  new  policy 
upon  our  theory  of  government;  nowhere  does  he  attempt  to  ex- 
plain why  a  colonial  system  was  wrong  in  1776  and  right  now. 
His  whole  argument  can  be  summed  up  as  follows:  We  are  in 
the  Philippine  Islands — no  matter  how  we  got  there,  we  are  there ; 
whether  there  for  good  or  evil,  we  cannot  get  away;  it  looks  as  if 
it  were  providential  for  them — and,  besides,  there  is  money  in  it 
for  us. 


WATTERSON'S  DEFINITION. 

Mr.  Watterson,  in  a  lengthy  editorial  in  the  Courier- Journal 
entitled  "The  Dream  of  the  Dreamer,"  fixes,  so  far  as  he  has 
power  to  do  so,  the  status  of  the  editor  of  THE  COMMONER. 

Quoting  from  THE  COMMOXER'S  editorial  of  three  weeks  ago 
he  says: 

In  these  extracts  Mr.  Bryan  shows  himself  not  as  a  party 
leader,  but  as  a  moral  philosopher.  They  in  turn  disclose  the 
difference  which  exists,  and  has  always  existed,  between  fact  and 
theory  as  illustrated  by  the  conduct  of  men  and  the  movement  of 
the  world.  To  lay  down  principles  is  easy  enough.  Any  man 
can  sit  in  his  watch-tower  by  the  margin  of  the  sea  and  descant 
upon  the  rules  of  navigation.  The  mariner  tossed  by  the  raging 
billows  applies  himself  to  the  needs  of  the  moment,  the  state  of 
his  steering  gear,  the  leaks  in  his  hold,  the  character  of  his  cargo, 
the  condition  of  his  crew,  the  weather  and  the  points  both  of 
the  compass  and  his  destination.  Yet  navigation  is  said  to  be  an 
exact  science,  whilst  government,  if  a  science  at  all,  is  least  exact 
of  all  others ;  a  bundle  of  quiddities,  referable  to  the  passions  of 
some,  the  interests  of  others,  the  ignorance  of  all;  intensely,  ex- 


136  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

clusively  practical,  the  very  sport  and  prey  of  the  accidents  of 
fortune. 

He  is  no  statesman  who  has  not  learned  to  detach  his  policies 
from  his  visions.  He  is  no  statesman  who  has  not  emancipated 
himself  from  that  which  for  want  of  a  better  name  dreamers  call 
the  ideal.  He  is  no  statesman  who  does  not  apply  his  means  to  his 
ends,  going  fast  or  slow  as  occasion  requires,  but  making  no  mis- 
take in  reading  the  riddle  of  the  time,  in  deciphering  the  mathe- 
matics of  the  moment,  in  translating  the  spirit  and  temper  of  the 
people. 

Mr.  Bryan,  let  us  repeat,  is  a  moral  philosopher — not  a  states- 
man. 


I  would  feel  more  overwhelmed  by  this  crushing  condemnation 
but  for  the  fact  that  Thomas  Jefferson  and  Benjamin  Franklin 
also  come  in  for  their  share  of  the  censure.  Their  principles  are 
swept  aside  as  "generalities"  when  they  attempt  to  hold  nations 
to  the  same  code  of  ethics  which  they  apply  to  individuals.  Mr. 
Watterson  says  that  he  will  not  stop  "to  gainsay  or  dispute"  these 
generalities. 

He  apparently  admits  the  correctness  of  the  principles  laid  down 
by  the  opponents  of  imperialism,  but  argues  that  the  nation  is  at 
liberty  to  disregard  them.  The  difference  between  the  honest  man 
and  the  dishonest  one  is  not  generally  a  difference  in  principles — 
for  nearly  all  men  admit  the  truth  when  it  is  stated  in  the  abstract 
— but  the  difference  is  that  the  former  applies  his  principles  to 
every-day  life,  while  the  latter,  in  the  hour  of  temptation,  waives 
them  aside  as  generalities  and  then  tries  to  lay  upon  his  environ- 
ment the  responsibility  for  his  sins. 

Mr.  Watterson's  definition  of  statesmanship  is  that  it  is  the 
art  of  detaching  one's  policies  from  his  visions  or,  to  speak  more 
plainly,  the  art  of  ignoring  moral  principles  whenever  it  is  popular 
or  profitable  to  do  so.  Fortunately  this  definition  has  never  been — 
and  let  us  hope  never  will  be — generally  accepted.  The  statesman 
must  have  ideals,  for  without  them  he  cannot  appeal  to  the  hearts 
of  men ;  and  he  must  follow  his  ideals,  for  unless  he  does  he  cannot 
long  retain  the  confidence  of  the  people.  The  politician  may 
"run  with  the  hare  and  hunt  with  the  hounds,"  but  in  the  former 
case  he  is  apt  to  be  caught  and  in  the  latter  case  he  earns  a  dog's 
reputation. 

Mr.  Watterson's  illustrations  are  as  unfortunate  as  his  logic,  ag 
the  following  will  show : 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  137 

Mr.  Jefferson  allowed  no  theory  to  stand  between  him  and  the 
purchase  of  Louisiana,  though  in  making  the  purchase  he  had  to 
cross  his  own  tracks.  Mr.  Lincoln  allowed  no  constitutional  scruple 
to  stand  between  him  and  emancipation,  though,  being  a  conscience 
Whig,  to  save  his  conscience,  he  issued  the  proclamation  as  a  war 
.measure. 

There  was  no  moral  principle  involved  in  the  acquisition  of  the 
Louisiana  Territory.  Jefferson  doubted  whether  the  letter  of  the 
constitution  permitted  it,  but  having  an  opportunity  to  purchase 
it,  not  for  the  exploitation  of  a  colony  but  as  an  integral  part  of 
a  republic,  he  did  so  expecting  to  ask  for  a  constitutional  amend- 
ment approving  of  it. 

The  act,  however,  was  so  universally  commended  and  the  opinion 
that  the  act  was  constitutional  was  so  general  that  no  effort  was 
made  to  amend  the  constitution. 

Lincoln  was  always  opposed  to  slavery.  While  he  believed  that 
slavery  should  be  protected  where  it  existed  under  the  Constitution, 
he  never  attempted  to  conceal  his  opinion  as  to  the  moral  question 
involved,  and  he  justified  his  emancipation  proclamation  as  the 
taking  of  property  is  always  justified  in  time  of  war.  Neither 
Jefferson  nor  Lincoln  "detached  his  policies  from  his  visions"  or 
justified  what  he  regarded  as  morally  wrong  on  the  ground  that 
he  was  swept  along  by  an  irresistible  force. 

Imperialism  is  not  a  transient  question;  it  is  an  organic  dis- 
ease and  attacks  the  vital  principles  of  the  republic.  The  perma- 
nent retention  of  the  Philippine  Islands  necessitates  one  of  two 
courses.  First,  we  can  admit  the  Filipinos  to  citizenship  and  allow 
them  to  share  with  us  in  shaping  the  destiny  of  "The  United  States 
of  America  and  Asia,"  but  no  considerable  portion  of  our  people 
favors  this  plan.  Second,  we  can  treat  the  Filipinos  as  subjects 
and  give  them,  not  such  a  government  as  we  have  but  such  a  govern- 
ment as  we  think  they  ought  to  have,  shooting  such  as  interpose 
an  objection.  This  is  the  plan  which  the  republican  party  is  now 
developing. 

Buckle  said  that  the  English  could  not  defend  the  war  against 
the  colonies  without  asserting  principles  which,  if  carried  out, 
would  have  destroyed  English  liberty.  So,  to-day,  the  democratic 
party  cannot  defend  the  administration's  policy  in  the  Philippines 
without  asserting  principles  which,  if  carried  out,  will  destroy 
liberty  in  the  United  States. 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  commandment  thou  shalt  not  steal,  cannot  be  qualified  so 
as  to  admit  of  the  stealing  of  islands  or  so  moderated  as  to  excuse 
larceny  when  committed  by  a  large  nation  against  a  small  one; 
neither  can  the  principles  which  underlie  our  government  be  so 
construed  as  to  sanction  a  government  founded  on  force  or  "taxa- 
tion without  representation."  For  more  than  a  century  our  nation 
has  been  travelling  upward  and  toward  the  light.  Its  history,  its 
traditions  and  its  songs  have  breathed  the  spirit  of  liberty  and  have 
been  an  inspiration  to  the  oppressed  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe. 
The  democratic  party  has  raised  its  voice  in  behalf  of  human  rights 
and  blood  bought  blessings.  It  will  not  abandon  its  ideas ;  it  will 
not  detach  its  policies  from  its  visions;  it  will  not  adopt  an  "any- 
thing to  win"  policy;  it  will  not  begin  bellowing  at  the  scent  of 
blood. 


VIRGINIA'S  TEMPTATION. 

Virginia  seems  likely  to  have  a  spirited  contest  over  a  proposed 
section  in  her  new  constitution  restricting  the  appropriation  for 
the  education  of  the  negroes.  The  plan  suggested,  and  strange 
to  say  it  has  received  considerable  support,  is  to  provide  that  the 
appropriation  for  negro  schools  shall  be  in  proportion  to  the  taxes 
paid  by  the  colored  people. 

The  Richmond  Times  denounces  the  scheme  in  the  following 
language : 

The  state  will  cruelly  have  neglected  its  duty  if  it  give  to  the 
white  children  the  means  of  primary  education,  and  withhold  it 
from  the  children  that  are  black.  NOT  do  we  believe  that  the 
people  of  Virginia  are  willing  that  this  cruel  thing  be  done. 

Senator  Daniels  in  a  letter  recently  published  says: 

Primary  education  ought  to  be  free  to  all.  With  the  three  R's 
open  to  everybody  they  have  the  keys  that  unlock  the  book  of  knowl- 
edge, and  it  is  their  own  fault  or  peculiar  misfortune  if  they  do 
not  then  work  out  their  own  salvation.  You  will  observe  that  I 
speak  of  primary  education.  I  do  so  because  I  think  much  of  edu- 
cation has  been  wasted,  and  there  is  ample  room  for  improvement 
and  reform  without  disturbing  the  foundations  of  education  and 
denying  to  any  one  primary  opportunities.  *  *  *  Our  own 
people  are  liberal  by  nature  and  history,  and  there  was  never  a 
time  when  they  could  better  afford  to  be  liberal  by  interest.  Every 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  139 

southern  state  and  every  border  state  has  had  a  constitutional  con- 
vention, and  some  of  them  two  constitutional  conventions  since 
Virginia's  last  one,  in  1867.  All  of  these  states  have  had  racial 
questions  to  deal  with,  and  some  of  them  were  stirred  to  the  high- 
est pitch  of  indignation  by  the  atrocities  of  carpet-bag  government. 
Yet  in  no  one  of  them  has  any  such  radical  move  as  the  parti- 
tion of  school  funds  by  severe  racial  lines  ever  found  favor.  This 
is  a  most  significant  fact.  It  shows  the  concurrent  opinion  of  all 
commonwealths  similarly  situated  to  ours  that  no  such  step  is 
advisable.  We  would  isolate  ourselves  by  taking  it  and  chill  the 
temper  of  reform. 

The  question  raised  is  one  of  very  serious  importance — of  far 
greater  importance  than  the  educational  qualification  which  has 
been  adopted  in  some  of  the  states.  An  educational  qualification, 
however  objectionable  it  may  seem  at  the  time,  is  only  a  tempo- 
rary barrier,  for  with  a  proper  school  system  the  franchise  is  soon 
within  the  reach  of  all;  but  to  disfranchise  the  negro  by  an 
educational  qualification  and  then  deny  him  the  means  of  getting 
an  education,  is  a  much  more  serious  matter. 

While  it  may  seem  a  hardship  for  the  white  people  to  bear  so 
large  a  share  as  they  do  of  the  expenses  of  instruction  for  colored 
children,  they  find  some  recompense  in  the  fact  that  they  own 
a  large  share  of  the  taxable  property.  In  no  state  of  the  union 
is  there  an  attempt  to  make  each  family  or  class  pay  for  its  own 
education.  In  every  community  the  expense  of  public  schools  is 
paid  by  general  taxation. 

Very  often  large  taxpayers  have  few  children  or  none  at  all, 
but  they  are  compelled  to  contribute  to  the  support  of  schools 
because  every  citizen  of  a  community  is  interested  in  the  educa- 
tion of  all  the  members  of  the  community.  Life  and  property 
are  more  secure  and  existence  more  tolerable  in  proportion  as 
the  people  are  developed  in  mind  and  character. 

If  the  people  of  Virginia  are  short  sighted  enough  to  yield  to 
the  temptation  and  abandon  their  efforts  to  educate  the  black 
people  among  them,  they  will  pay  a  terrible  penalty  in  being 
compelled  to  live  among  people  brutalized  by  ignorance.  The 
amount  of  money  saved  would  be  a  small  return  for  the  peril 
which  they  would  bring  '  upon  themselves  and  their  children. 
Jefferson,  whose  dust  makes  sacred  the  soil  of  Monticello,  was  a 
firm  believer  in  a  common  school  system  which  would  place  the 
advantages  of  education  within  the  reach  of  every  child.  Surely 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Virginia,  the  home  of  Jefferson,  will  not  be  the  first  state  to  enter 
upon  a  restrictive  policy  which  would  condemn  a  portion  of  the 
people  to  enforced  illiteracy. 


THE  PASS  IN  COUET. 

During  the  recent  session  of  the  Nebraska  Legislature  two  bills 
relating  to  railroad  passes  were  introduced  in  the  House  of  Bepre- 
sentatives  and  favorably  reported,  but  were  not  considered.  The 
following  extracts  present  the  parts  germane  to  the  present  discus- 
sion. H.  E.  No.  430 :  "A  judge  or  justice  is  disqualified  from  act- 
ing as  such  except  by  mutual  consent  of  parties,  in  any  case  wherein 
he  is  a  party  or  interested  or  when  he  shall 

have  received  or  used  free  transportation,  or  transportation  at  less 
than  the  established  or  usual  rate  of  price,  or  had  the  promise 
of  the  same  in  any  form  for  his  person  or  property,  from  any 
railroad  company  or  over  or  upon  any  railroad  or  any  such  trans- 
portation within  the  time  aforesaid,  shall  have  been,  directly 
or  indirectly  requested  by  him  for  himself  or  for  any  other 
person  or  property,  and  such  mutual  consent  must  be  in  writing 
and  made  a  part  of  the  record." 

H.  E.  No.  428:  "It  shall  be  sufficient  cause  of  challenge  of  a 
petit  juror  that  he  lacks  any  one  of  the  qualifications  mentioned 
in  section  two  (2)  of  this  act  *  *  *  or  that  he 
has  served  as  a  juror  on  the  trial  of  a  cause  in  any  court  of 
record  in  the  county  within  one  year  previous  to  the  time  of 
his  being  offered  as  a  juror;  or  that  within  such  time  he  shall 
have  received  or  used  free  transportation,  or  transportation  at  less 
than  the  established  or  usual  rate  or  price,  or  had  the  promise  of  the 
same  in  any  form  for  his  person  or  property,  from  any  railroad 
company,  or  over  or  upon  any  railroad,  or  any  such  transportation 
within  the  time  aforesaid  shall  have  been  directly  or  indirectly 
requested  by  him  for  himself  or  for  any  other  person  or  property." 

Judge  Hunger  of  the  United  States  Court  for  the  District  of 
Nebraska  has  recently  held  it  cause  for  challenge  in  a  suit  to  which 
a  railroad  was  a  party  that  a  juror  after  he  .was  drawn  and  sum- 
moned asked  and  received  from  such  railroad  a  pass. 

The  principles  embodied  in  the  bills  quoted  from  and  the  rule 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  141 

laid  down  by  Judge  Munger  are  undoubtedly  sound.  That  a  pass 
has  a  pecuniary  value  is  recognized  by  both  the  donor  and  the 
donee,  and  that  a  pass  may  have  an  influence  upon  the  mind  and 
decision  of  a  juror  or  judge  is  understood  by  the  railroad  if  not 
by  the  recipient  of  the  pass.  Corporations  do  not  give  away  things 
of  value  without  expecting  a  return  in  some  form,  and  they  would 
not  continue  to  give  passes  unless  they  felt  that  this  expectation 
had  been  realized  in  the  past. 

The  parties  to  a  suit  are  entitled  to  a  fair  and  impartial  trial, 
and  a  trial  cannot  be  fair  or  impartial  if  the  judge  or  a  juror  is 
under  pecuniary  obligations  to  one  of  the  parties  to  the  suit.  As 
long  as  men  can  be  influenced  by  "zeal  born  of  benefits  received  and 
fostered  by  the  hope  of  favors  yet  to  come,"  as  Mr.  Cleveland  once 
felicitously  expressed  it,  they  will  be  tempted  to  lean  toward  the 
side  from  which  the  benefit  comes.  It  cannot  be  stated  as  an  uni- 
versal or  invariable  rule  that  a  pass  is  a  bribe,  nor  can  it  be  said 
that  it  always  influences  the  person  who  receives  it,  but  until  a 
passometer  is  invented  which  will  measure  the  influence  of  free 
transportation  upon  the  judicial  mind,  the  only  safe  plan  is  to 
prohibit  the  use  of  passes  by  those  who  are  to  decide  controversies 
to  which  a  railroad  is  a  party.  If  a  judge  is  required  to  travel  in 
the  discharge  of  official  duties  his  expenses  are  provided  for;  if 
he  has  occasion  to  travel  on  private  business  he  can  better  afford 
to  buy  a  ticket  than  the  average  man.  If  any  one  will  observe  he 
will  find  that  those  who  need  free  transportation  most  are  unable 
to  secure  it,  and  that  those  best  able  to  pay  their  fare  are  the 
ones  who  have  the  influence  necessary  to  secure  passes. 


CRIMINAL  SPECULATION. 

If  a  crime  is  -defined  as  an  act  the  doing  of  which  is  prohibited 
by  law,  stock  speculation  cannot  be  considered  criminal,  but  when 
the  word  crime  is  used  in  its  broader  sense  to  describe  an  act  which 
offends  against  morality  or  the  public  welfare,  it  certainly  in- 
cludes that  species  of  gambling  upon  the  market  which  endangers 
the  community  as  well  as  injures  the  participants.  A  record  of 
Wall  Street's  doings  for  the  last  week  is  an  indictment  against  our 
boasted  civilization.  That  such  transactions  are  allowed  is  as  much 
a  reflection  upon  the  intelligence  of  the  country  as  it  is  upon  the 


142  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

conscience  of  the  people.  It  is  little  less  than  amazing  that  a 
few  men  should  be  permitted  to  corner  the  market  for  their  own 
selfish  purposes,  beat  down  the  price  of  one  stock  and  boom  the 
price  of  another  stock,  demoralizing  business  and  jeopardizing 
the  interests  of  all  classes  of  society.  It  is  reported  that  the  slump 
in  stocks  amounted  to  seven  hundred  millions  in  value,  and 
that  the  New  York  banks  had  to  put  up  nearly  twenty  millions 
of  dollars  to  prevent  a  panic.  How  will  the  historian  describe  an 
age  in  which  a  petty  thief  is  severely  punished  while  great  crimi- 
nals go  unwhipped  ?  It  often  takes  an  object  lesson  to  arouse  the 
people  to  the  evils  of  a  bad  system  and  the  recent  fluctuations  in 
the  stock  market,  costly  as  they  have  been,  will  be  cheap  if  they 
lead  to  legislation  which  will  put  an  end  to  stock  gambling,  errone- 
ously described  as  "business." 


COKPORATIONS  ENTEK  PAELIAMENT. 

From  London  dispatches  it  would  seem  that  corporation  in- 
fluence is  manifesting  itself  in  the  English  parliament.  The 
following  is  in  point : 

The  discussion  in  the  house  of  commons  to-day  of  a  private 
bill  conferring  additional  powers  on  the  London  &  North- 
western railway  led  to  a  great  deal  of  acrimonious  recrimination. 
John  Burns,  who,  with  the  opposition  generally,  opposed  the  meas- 
ure, was  called  to  order  by  the  speaker  for  stigmatizing  some  of 
the  railroad  representatives  in  the  house  as  "ornamental  guinea 
pigs."  Mr.  Burns'  special  reference  was  to  Mr.  Macartney,  who 
was  elected  a  director  of  the  London  &  Northwestern  railroad 
after  having  been  appointed  financial  secretary  to  the  admirality. 

The  bill  was  finally  rejected  by  a  vote  of  210  to  202,  amid  pro- 
longed cheering. 

Mr.  Swift  MacNeill,  a  liberal  member,  entered  a  protest  against 
Mr.  Macartney's  vote  in  favor  of  the  bill  on  the  ground  that  he 
was  pecuniarily  interested.  Mr.  Macartney's  right  to  vote  was 
defended  on  the  ground  of  precedent,  Mr.  Balfour  going  to  his 
rescue.  Sir  Henry  Campbell-Bannerman  and  John  Dillon  advo- 
cated a  rule  prohibiting  directors  of  corporations  from  voting 
under  such  circumstances.  Mr.  Kier-Hardie  said  that  the  House 
ought  to  adopt  a  higher  standard  of  purity  and  declared  that  there 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  143 

was  a  strong  feeling  in  the  country  "that  the  House  was  becoming 
more  and  more  corrupt  financially."  He  declared  that  the  "work- 
ing people  regarded  the  House  as  an  annex  to  the  stock  exchange." 
All  this  goes  to  show  that  corporate  influence  is  making  itself 
felt  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  and  that  there,  as  here,  it  is 
being  exerted  in  behalf  of  privileges  and  favors  antagonistic  to 
the  interests  of  the  common  people.  It  also  shows  that  those  who 
are  under  corporation  influence  lose  all  sense  of  propriety  and  in- 
sist upon  voting  upon  questions  in  which  they  are  pecuniarily 
interested. 


MOTION,  NOT  PROGRESS. 

A  republican  reader  of  THE  COMMONER — and  THE  COMMONER 
is  glad  to  have  republican  readers — complains  because  this  paper 
refers  with  approval  to  the  principles  of  Jefferson,  Jackson,  and 
Monroe  and  condemns  the  principles  set  forth  by  the  republican 
party  of  to-day. 

The  reader  referred  to  objects  to  the  prevalent  practice  of  "ran- 
sacking antiquated  centuries  to  find  a  suitable  standard  for  present 
day  actions."  He  says:  "All  the  nations  are  moving  forward  in 
conformity  with  the  growth  of  knowledge,  the  birth  of  new 
thought,  and  the  expansion  of  ideas ;  and  it  is  neither  wise,  intelli- 
gent, nor  patriotic  to  condemn  progressive  men  and  advanced 
measures." 

The  difficulty  with  this  republican  reader  is  that  he  fails  to 
distinguish  between  motion  and  progress.  Motion  is  change  of 
place;  progress  is  movement  forward.  He  fails*  to  distinguish 
between  growth  and  inflammation.  The  republican  party  is  not 
making  progress;  it  is  in  motion,  but  the  motion  is  backward 
instead  of  forward.  The  doctrines  which  it  now  advocates  are  not 
new;  they  are  as  old  as  history.  Imperialism  is  not  an  invention 
of  modern  origin;  it  is  ancient.  It  rests  upon  the  doctrine  of 
brute  force,  and  force  was  the  foundation  of  empires  in  the  past 
and  is  the  foundation  of  the  monarchies  of  the  old  world  to-day. 

Cain  was  the  first  man  to  act  upon  the  imperialistic  idea.  He 
killed  his  brother  and  wore  the  brand  of  a  murderer  forever  after- 
ward. Imperialism  has  been  killing  ever  since.  It  disregards 
human  rights  and  moral  principles.  The  fact  that  a  nation  instead 
of  an  individual  commits  a  wrong  does  not  change  the  character 


144  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  the  act;  neither  does  the  fact  that  punishment  is  delayed  justify 
us  in  believing  that  it  can  be  avoided.  There  is  only  one  sound 
rule,  namely,  that  every  violation  of  human  rights  will  bring  its 
punishment — if  a  great  many  join  in  the  violation,  the  punish- 
ment will  be  greater  when  it  comes. 

The  principles  of  Jefferson,  Monroe  and  Jackson  are  referred  to 
because  they  were  sound  principles  at  the  time  they  were  applied, 
and  they  are  still  sound.  They  can  be  forgotten,  they  can  be  ig- 
nored, they  can  be  trampled  upon,  but  their  truth  cannot  be 
destroyed. 


THE  KATIFICATION  OF  THE  TEEATY. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  has  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  republicans  try  to  shirk  responsibility  for  an  imperial  policy 
by  saying  that  I  advised  the  ratification  of  the  treaty.  He  asks 
that  I  state  the  reasons  which  led  me  to  favor  ratification. 

In  a  speech  delivered  at  Indianapolis,  August  8,  1900,  accept- 
ing the  democratic  nomination,  I  took  occasion  to  discuss  this 
matter,  the  following  being  an  extract  from  that  speech: 

When  the  President  finally  laid  before  the  senate  a  treaty  which 
recognized  the  independence  of  Cuba,  but  provided  for  the  cession 
of  the  Philippine  Islands  to  the  United  States,  the  menace  of 
imperialism  became  so  apparent  that  many  preferred  to  reject  the 
treaty  and  risk  the  ills  that  might  follow  rather  than  take  the 
chance  of  correcting  the  errors  of  the  treaty  by  the  independent 
action  of  this  country. 

I  was  among  the  number  of  those  who  believed  it  better  to 
ratify  the  treaty  and  end  the  war,  release  the  volunteers,  remove 
the  excuse  for  war  expenditures  and  then  give  the  Filipinos  the 
independence  which  might  be  forced  from  Spain  by  a  new  treaty. 

In  view  of  the  criticism  which  my  action  aroused  in  some  quar- 
ters, I  take  this  occasion  to  restate  the  reasons  given  at  that  time. 
I  thought  it  safer  to  trust  the  American  people  to  give  independence 
to  the  Filipinos  than  to  trust  the  accomplishment  of  that  purpose 
to  diplomacy  with  an  unfriendly  nation. 

Lincoln  embodied  an  argument  in  the  question  when  he  asked, 
"Can  aliens  make  treaties  easier  than  friends  can  make  laws?" 
I  believe  that  we  are  now  in  a  better  position  to  wage  a  successful 
contest  against  imperialism  than  we  would  have  been  had  the 
treaty  been  rejected.  With  the  treaty  ratified  a  clean-cut  issue  is 
presented  between  a  government  by  consent  and  a  government 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  145 

by  force,  and  imperialists  must  bear  the  responsibility  for  all  that 
happens  until  the  question  is  settled. 

If  the  treaty  had  been  rejected  the  opponents  of  imperialism 
would  have  been  held  responsible  for  any  international  complica- 
tions which  might  have  arisen  before  the  ratification  of  another 
treaty.  But  whatever  difference  of  opinion  may  have  existed  as 
to  the  best  method  of  opposing  a  colonial  policy,  there  never  was 
any  difference  as  to  the  great  importance  of  the  question  and 
there  is  no  difference  now  as  to  the  course  to  be  pursued. 

The  title  of  Spain  being  extinguished  we  were  at  liberty  to  deal 
with  the  Filipinos  according  to  American  principles.  The  Bacon 
resolution,  introduced  a  month  before  hostilities  broke  out  at 
Manila,  promised  independence  to  the  Filipinos  on  the  same  terms 
that  it  was  promised  to  the  Cubans.  I  supported  this  resolution 
and  believe  that  its  adoption  prior  to  the  breaking  out  of  hos- 
tilities would  have  prevented  bloodshed,  and  that  its  adoption  at 
any  subsequent  time  would  have  ended  hostilities. 

If  the  treaty  had  been  rejected  considerable  time  would  have 
necessarily  elapsed  before  a  new  treaty  could  have  been  agreed 
upon  and  ratified,  and  during  that  time  the  question  would  have 
been  agitating  the  public  mind.  If  the  Bacon  resolution  had  been 
adopted  by  the  senate  and  carried  out  by  the  President,  either  at 
the  time  of  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  or  at  any  time  afterwards, 
it  would  have  taken  the  question  of  imperialism  out  of  politics 
and  left  the  American  people  free  to  deal  with  their  domestic 
problems.  But  the  resolution  was  defeated  by  the  vote  of  the 
republican  vice-president,  and  from  that  time  to  this  a  republican 
congress  has  refused  to  take  any  action  whatever  in  the  matter. 

While  the  treaty  was  pending  in  the  senate,  and  about  two 
months  before  the  vote  was  taken  upon  it,  I  wrote  an  article  for 
the  New  York  Journal,  giving  reasons  in  support  of  the  proposition 
to  ratify  the  treaty  and  declare  the  policy  of  the  government  by 
resolution.  This  article  will  be  found  on  another  page  of  this 
issue. 

The  ratification  of  the  treaty  in  no  way  committed  this  nation 
to  an  imperial  policy.  It  simply  terminated  Spanish  authority 
and  left  the  United  States  free  to  deal  with  the  islands  according 
to  American  principles.  The  Bacon  resolution,  which  declared 
it  to  be  the  purpose  of  the  United  States  to  establish  a  stable 
government,  which,  when  established,  was  to  be  turned  over  to 
the  inhabitants  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  was  a  tie  vote  in  the 
senate,  and  was  only  defeated  by  the  vote  of  the  vice-president. 
As  the  treaty  required  a  two-thirds  vote  for  its  ratification,  it  is 


146  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

evident  that  one-fourth  of  those  who  voted  to  ratify  did  so  with 
the  understanding  that  the  question  remained  an  open  one. 

Senator  Wellington  of  Maryland  voted  for  the  ratification  of 
the  treaty,  and  in  a  speech  delivered  last  fall  he  stated  that  he 
so  voted  because  the  President  promised  him  that  the  Philippine 
Islands  would  not  be  held  permanently.  If  the  ratification  of  the 
treaty  had  necessarily  committed  this  country  to  an  imperialistic 
policy,  then  all  who  opposed  imperialism  would  have  been  justified 
in  opposing  it,  aye,  even  compelled  to  oppose,  the  treaty.  But 
as  ratification  did  not  commit  the  nation  to  an  imperialistic  policy, 
the  only  question  the  senate  had  to  consider  was  how  best  to  cor- 
rect the  errors  in  the  treaty. 

The  payment  of  twenty  millions  of  dollars  to  Spain  did  not 
obligate  this  country  to  enter  upon  a  colonial  policy.  It  could 
have  been  recovered  from  the  Filipinos  in  return  for  independence, 
and  if  not  recovered,  it  was  a  small  contribution  to  the  extension 
of  liberty.  We  had  by  one  act  of  Congiess  appropriated  fifty 
millions  of  dollars  to  secure  independence  for  the  Cubans  who 
numbered  less  than  two  millions,  could  we  not  spare  two-fifths 
of  the  sum  to  bring  liberty  to  five  times  as  many  in  the  Philip- 
pines ? 

The  treaty  should  have  provided  for  the  independence  of  the 
Filipinos  as  it  provided  for  the  independence  of  the  Cubans,  but 
when  the  treaty,  by  an  inexcusable  error,  provided  for  cession  in- 
stead of  independence  it  was  easier  to  ratify  the  treaty,  extinguish 
the  title  of  Spain,  and  confer  independence  upon  the  Filipinos 
than  to  continue  the  war  and  risk  international  complications  by 
an  effort  to  compel  Spain  to  do  what  we  could  do  ourselves. 

Our  treaty  with  Spain,  according  to  international  law,  imposed 
upon  us  no  obligations  to  change  our  form  of  government  or  to 
abandon  our  ideals  in  order  to  enforce  an  imperialistic  doctrine. 
It  is  still  possible  for  this  nation  to  return  to  American  methods. 
All  it  has  to  do  is  to  announce  its  purpose  to  deal  with  the  Filipinos 
in  accordance  with  the  principles  set  forth  in  the  declaration  of 
independence  and  then  keep  its  promise.  Why  does  it  not  do 
this?  Because  the  republicans  think  that  oriental  trade  is  more 
important  than  American  principles. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  147 


VIII. 
PLUTOCEACY  IN  EDUCATION. 

Unfortunately  the  tendency  of  a  principle  to  expand  until  it 
pervades  every  sphere  of  human  thought  and  activity  is  not  con- 
fined to  good  principles.  The  idea  of  liberty,  based  upon  the  doc- 
trine that  all  men  are  created  equal,  has  for  more  than  a  century 
been  manifesting  itself  in  government,  in  society  and  in  church 
organizations,  and  it  has  tended  to  ennoble  man  and  to  exalt  human 
rights.  But  the  opposite  doctrine  has  not  been  entirely  dormant. 
Just  now  the  plutocratic  idea  is  very  active.  The  tyranny  of  or- 
ganized wealth  in  industry  is  sure  to  be  followed  by  an  increasing 
influence  of  money  in  government,  society  and  the  church.  Every- 
thing will  be  colored  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  by  the  theory  that 
money  is  the  one  thing  of  overshadowing  importance. 

The  commencement  period,  when  schools  are  closing  and  gradu- 
ating classes  are  occupying  public  attention,  is  a  good  time  to 
consider  the  influence  of  plutocracy  upon  education.  Fortunately 
Mr.  Charles  Schwab,  the  million-dollar-a-year  president  of  the 
steel  trust,  has  spoken  so  plainly  on  the  subject  that  little  room  is 
left  for  conjecture  or  speculation.  In  speaking  to  a  class  at  an 
evening  school  in  New  York  a  few  nights  ago,  he  said: 

Let  me  advise  you  all  to  make  an  early  start  in  life.  The  boy 
with  the  manual  training  and  the  common  school  education  who 
can  start  in  life  at  sixteen  or  seventeen  can  leave  the  boy  who 
goes  to  college  till  he  is  twenty  or  more  so  far  behind  in  the  race 
that  he  can  never  catch  up.  This,  however,  does  not  apply  to  the 
professional  life.  The  other  day  I  was  at  a  gathering  of  some  forty 
business  men — men  in  industrial  and  manufacturing  business — 
and  the  question  arose  as  to  how  many  were  college-bred  men. 
Of  the  forty  only  two  had  been  graduated  from  college,  and  the 
rest  of  the  party,  thirty-eight  in  number,  had  received  only  com- 
mon school  educations  and  had.  started  in  life  as  poor  boys.  So 
I  say,  as  parting  advice,  start  early. 

This  is  the  advice  given  by  the  best  paid  employe  in  the  United 
States — the  advice  given  by  a  man  who  receives  a  salary  twenty 
times  as  great  as  that  paid  to  the  president  of  the  United  States, 


148  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

one  hundred  times  as  great  as  the  salary  paid  to  a  justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  two  hundred  times  as  great  as  the  salary  paid  to 
senators  and  representatives  and  more  than  a  thousand  times  as 
great  as  the  average  salary  paid  to  ministers  and  school  teachers. 
His  advice  shows  that  he  misconceives  the  main  purpose  of  edu- 
cation, and  values  going  to  school  only  as  it  enables  the  student 
to  get  ahead  of  some  one  in  the  business  world. 

The  principal  value  of  education  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  dis- 
ciplines the  mind,  enlarges  the  mental  horizon  and  enables  one  to 
view  men  and  things  in  their  proper  relations.  Education  is  in- 
tended to  make  a  citizen  useful  to  his  country  as  well  as  success- 
ful. It  makes  its  possessor  the  heir  of  the  ages  and  enables  him 
to  judge  of  the  future  by  the  experience  of  the  past.  If  a  boy  is 
taken  out  of  school  at  the  age  of  sixteen  or  seventeen  and  put  to 
work  "making  a  fortune,"  he  is  never  likely  to  have  time  to  study 
history  or  political  economy  and  will  be  apt  to  accept  without 
question  the  opinions  of  those  who  are  a  little  ahead  of  him  in 
the  race  for  wealth — opinions  which  are  in  turn  received  from 
those  still  farther  ahead. 

Plutocracy  boasts  that  it  is  practical;  it  has  no  ideals,  for  an 
ideal  is  looked  up  to,  while  plutocracy  has  its  face  to  the  ground. 

Mr.  Schwab's  advice  will  do  infinite  damage  to  the  young  men 
of  the  country,  but  it  ought  to  awaken  the  thoughtful  to  the  ten- 
dencies of  commercialism.  If  we  are  to  have  the  oppression  of 
a  trust  system  at  home  and  the  despotism  of  an  imperial  policy 
abroad,  we  must  expect  to  see  education  dwarfed,  social  inter- 
course debased  and  religion  materialized. 


THE  EFFECT  OF  DIET. 

It  is  reported  from  Havana  that  the  Cuban  commissioners  upon 
their  return  gave  a  detailed  account  of  their  trip  to  Washing- 
ton, including  the  social  attention  shown  them.  Some  objection 
was  made  to  the  recording  of  the  entertainment  part  of  the  report, 
but  the  objection  was  very  properly  over-ruled. 

The  republican  leaders  have  expert  knowledge  on  the  effect  of 
diet.  In  the  campaign  of  1900  they  addressed  their  arguments 
to  the  stomach  rather  than  to  the  head  or  heart.  They  insisted 
that  a  full  meal  was  the  summit  of  human  hope  and  their  theory 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  149 

exhibited  some  signs  of  popularity.  History  testifies  to  the  molli- 
fying effect  of  food  distributed  to  the  poor  in  the  days  when 
plutocracy  was  destroying  the  glory  of  the  Roman  empire.  If  the 
Cuban  commissioners  were  won  over  to  the  Platt  amendment  at 
the  banquet  table,  it  is  only  fair  that  this  new  evidence  of  the 
potency  of  pleasant  viands  should  be  preserved  in  the  Cuban 
archives.  If  they  swallowed  their  objections  to  foreign  inter- 
ference and  washed  them  down  with  wine  the  fact  should  be 
properly  authenticated. 

There  are  those  who  insist  that  the  disposition  can  be  changed 
by  diet  and  much  evidence  can  be  adduced  in  support  of  the  propo- 
sition. Many  a  man  has  visited  Washington  with  a  disposition 
to  serve  his  constituents  and  has  found  that  disposition  gradually 
changed  by  a  diet  of  champagne  and  terrapin. 


LINCOLN'S  GETTYSBURG  SPEECH. 

As  the  survivors  of  the  Mexican,  civil  and  other  wars  prepare 
for  the  solemn  services  of  Memorial  day  they  will  find  both  pleas- 
ure and  profit  in  re-reading  Lincoln's  Gettysburg  speech.  To  the 
veteran  it  is  an  expression  of  lofty  patriotism,  to  the  student  of 
oratory  it  is  a  model  of  brevity,  beauty,  simplicity  and  strength, 
and  to  all  it  is  an  inspiration: 

Fourscore  and  seven  years  ago  our  fathers  brought  forth  upon 
this  continent  a  new  nation,  conceived  in  liberty,  and  dedicated  to 
the  proposition  that  all  men  are  created  equal.  Now  we  are  en- 
gaged in  a  great  civil  war,  testing  whether  that  nation,  or  any 
nation  so  conceived  and  so  dedicated,  can  long  endure.  We  are 
met  on  a  great  battle-field  of  that  war.  We  have  come  to  dedicate 
a  portion  of  that  field  as  a  final  resting-place  for  those  who  here 
gave  their  lives  that  that  nation  might  live.  It  is  altogether  fitting 
and  proper  that  we  should  do  this.  But  in  a  larger  sense  we  cannot 
dedicate,  we  cannot  consecrate,  we  cannot  hallow  this  ground. 
The  brave  men,  living  and  dead,  who  struggled  here,  have  conse- 
crated it  far  above  our  power  to  add  or  detract.  The  world  will 
little  note,  nor  long  remember,  what  we  say  here,  but  it  can  never 
forget  what  they  did  here.  It  is  for  us,  the  living,  rather  to  be 
dedicated  here  to  the  unfinished  work  which  they  who  fought  here 
have  thus  far  so  nobly  advanced.  It  is  rather  for  us  to  be  here 
dedicated  to  the  great  task  remaining  before  us,  that  from  these 
honored  dead  we  take  increased  devotion  to  that  cause  for  which! 


150  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

they  gave  the  last  full  measure  of  devotion;  that  we  here  highly 
resolve  that  these  dead  shall  not  have  died  in  vain;  that  this  na- 
tion, under  God,  shall  have  a  new  birth  of  freedom,  and  that 
government  of  the  people,  by  the  people,  and  for  the  people,  shall 
not  perish  from  the  earth. 

At  no  time  within  the  past  quarter  of  a  century  has  there  been 
more  necessity  than  there  is  now  for  the  lovers  of  liberty  to  exert 
themselves  to  preserve  "a  government  of  the  people  by  the  people 
and  for  the  people." 

ME.  WATTERSON'S  CARTOON. 

Editor  Watterson  of  the  Courier- Journal  has  devoted  so  much 
space  to  me  that  no  apology  is  necessary  for  another  comment 
upon  his  views. 

Relying  upon  his  age,  experience  and  more  extended  observa- 
tion, he  has  on  several  occasions  outlined  what  he  regards  as  the 
proper  course  for  me  to  pursue.  Without  questioning  his  good 
intent  or  his  wisdom  on  subjects  in  general,  I  find  it  impossible  to 
follow  his  advice  without  abandoning  all  that  I  have  been  taught 
to  hold  sacred.  In  the  first  editorial  on  this  subject  Mr.  Watter- 
son's  position  was  criticised  as  an  immoral  one.  The  editorials 
with  which  he  has  attempted  to  support  his  position  have  more 
and  more  clearly  demonstrated  the  weakness  of  his  argument. 

No  advocate  of  imperialism  has  placed  his  defense  upon  lower 
ground.  No  one  who  has  attempted  to  defend  the  administration 
has  shown  more  complete  disregard  for  the  principles  and  motives 
that  should  actuate  men,  parties  and  nations.  He  says : 

In  abandoning  them  (the  Philippines)  we  yield  our  vantage 
ground  in  the  far  East,  which  is  already  become  the  center  of  the 
strife  of  the  powers  for  commercial  supremacy.  We  make  what 
the  world  and  the  ages  will  hold  an  ignominious  and  a  short- 
sighted surrender;  for  we  are  entering  upon  a  cycle  of  pure  com- 
mercialism, whose  end  will  witness  the  survival  of  the  fittest,  and 
since  when  was  any  spirited  people  insensible  either  to  money  or 
empire?  Wrong,  morally  wrong,  says  Mr.  Bryan?  Why,  on  that 
line,  all  effort,  which  has  gain  for  its  object  is  wrong.  Out  of 
line  with  American  traditions,  says  Mr.  Bryan?  Why,  every  im- 
portant movement  from  the  Louisiana  purchase  to  the  abolition 
of  slavery,  might  be  so  described.  But,  right  or  wrong,  facts;  and, 
as  an  organized  body,  what  shall  the  democratic  party  do  about 
them?  J 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  151 

This  is  Mr.  Watterson's  argument.  He  first  assumes  that  we 
are  entering  "upon  a  cycle  of  pure  commercialism."  Second,  he 
assumes  that  it  is  impossible  to  combat  this  spirit  and,  third,  he 
argues  that  (assuming  his  two  prophecies  to  be  true)  it  is  better 
for  the  democratic  party  to  do  wrong  and  prosper  than  to  do 
right  and  suffer.  He  attempts  to  disclose  what  is  destiny,  and  then 
criticises  those  who  refuse  to  accept  him  as  an  ordained  prophet. 
All  through  Mr.  Watterson's  argument  runs  the  theory  that  wrong 
is  not  wrong  if  it  is  successful,  and  that  right  is  not  right  if  it 
fails.  His  argument  ignores  entirely  the  fixed  moral  principles 
which  should  guide  the  individual,  the  party  and  the  nation,  and 
he  also  ignores  the  fact  that  retribution  always  follows  wrong- 
doing. 

He  tells  me  how  I  can  be  a  Warwick,  if  not  a  king.  He  does 
me  scant  honor  when  he  assumes  that  I  am  willing  to  purchase 
either  position  at  the  expense  of  moral  or  political  principles. 

It  is  not  my  present  purpose,  however,  to  discuss  his  views,  for 
when  two  men  differ  as  to  a  moral  question,  argumentation  is  of 
little  value.  Morals  are  matters  of  heart  rather  than  of  head. 
If  argument  would  keep  men  from  stealing  or  from  taking  hu- 
man life,  there  would  be  neither  larceny  nor  murder,  but  when 
a  man  really  wants  to  steal  or  to  kill,  or,  to  apply  the  principles 
to  the  present  case,  wants  nothing  but  immediate  victory,  and 
cares  not  for  the  necessary  but  remote  consequences,  the  case  is 
almost  hopeless. 

The  object  of  this  editorial  is  to  call  attention  to  a  picture 
which  illustrates  Mr.  Watterson's  views  better  than  his  pen  or 
mine  can  do.  Judge,  the  illustrated  paper,  asked  Mr.  Watterson 
to  suggest  an  idea  for  a  cartoon.  In  reply  he  wrote:  "Draw  a 
picture  of  baby  Jonathan  in  his  cradle  asleep.  About  him  are 
his  playthings — a  toy  kettle  drum,  marked  'Independence,'  a  toy 
cannon  marked  'Freedom,'  and  dangling  by  a  string  from  his 
clutched  hand  a  child's  balloon,  marked  'The  Future.'  Above  him 
hover  the  spirits  of  Washington  and  Franklin.  Beyond,  in  the 
clouds,  a  vision  of  domes  and  spires,  spanned  by  a  rainbow  of  red, 
white  and  blue.  Beneath,  the  words  out  of  the  old  song,  'Asleep, 
I  Dream  of  Love.' 

"Draw  another  picture  of  a  richly  furnished  apartment  and  a 
party  at  a  card  table;  England  and  Germany  at  the  right  and 


152  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

left  <?f  Uncle  Sam,  who,  with  calm  self-confidence  sits  in  a 
rocker.  Russia,  France,  China  and  Japan  ranged  about.  Some 
exposed  cards,  marked  Teace,'  'Order/  'Religion/  'Humanity/ 
Behind  Uncle  Sam  on  the  wall  appear  portraits  of  Washington, 
Jefferson,  Jackson,  and  Lincoln,  and  on  the  floor  a  great  mastiff, 
eager  and  alert  and  ready  to  spring,  marked  'Popular  sovereignty.' 
Beneath  this  portrait  Uncle  Sam  is  made  to  say  'Gentlemen,  I 
hank  this  game/  Under  the  first  picture  write  1801,  under  the 
other  1901." 

By  the  kind  permission  of  Judge  this  cartoon  was  reproduced 
and  the  reader  will  note  that  Judge's  artist  has  faithfully 
carried  out  Mr.  Watterson's  instructions.  It  would  be  difficult  to 
illustrate  more  forcibly  the  change  that  has  taken  place  within 
the  last  two  years.  It  is  hard  to  conceive  of  a  more  scathing  con-: 
demnation  of  the  innovation  wrought  by  the  republican  adminis- 
tration. From  the  child  dreaming  of  love  to  the  successful  gambler 
is  a  transition,  indeed!  The  remarkable  thing  about  it  all  is 
that  men  who,  like  Mr.  Watterson,  recognize  the  change,  should 
attempt  to  defend  it  or  should  counsel  democrats  to  accept  it  as 
final.  The  question  that  must  occur  to  every  reader  is:  Is  this 
change  necessary?  And  if  not  necessary,  why  should  it  be  sub- 
mitted to  as  a  matter  of  destiny?  Is  freedom  only  a  toy  cannon, 
and  independence  a  noisy  drum  ?  Is  there  no  other  future  for  baby 
Jonathan  than  the  career  of  a  fortunate  gambler?  Is  it  not 
possible  to  conceive  of  a  republic  developing  and  expanding  with- 
out the  abandonment  of  ideals  or  principles? 

This  doctrine,  that  virtue  and  morality  are  good  enough  for  a 
child  but  out  of  place  in  a  man  is  a  monstrous  one,  and  one  un- 
worthy of  the  great  brain  and  big  heart  of  the  man  who  seems 
to  have  fallen  into  the  advocacy  of  it.  It  is  impossible  to  exag- 
gerate the  demoralizing  influence  of  such  a  doctrine;  it  paralyzes 
all  attempts  to  instruct  or  restrain  youth.  When  you  say  to  a 
young  man  that  a  nation  when  full  grown  must  throw  off  restraint, 
ignore  well-settled  principles,  and  plunge  into  the  exciting  but 
uncertain  career  of  a  gamester,  you  cannot  blame  him  if  he  tells 
you  that  the  same  doctrine  applied  to  him  would  lead  him  to  dis- 
card all  the  good  advice  given  him  in  his  boyhood. 

The  imperialistic  doctrine  lays  the  axe  "at  the  root  of  the  tree 
and  attacks  every  vital  tenet  of  our  government  and  of  our  religion, 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  153 

and  we  already  begin  to  see  the  evil  effect  of  it.  The  embezzle- 
ment at  Havana  and  the  crookedness  at  Manila  are  only  illus- 
trations of  what  may  be  expected  under  a  colonial  system.  If 
this  nation  adopts  the  principle  that  helpless  races  can  be  ex- 
ploited because  we  are  strong,  carpet-bag  officials  will  not  be  slow 
to  adopt  the  same  principle  and  appropriate  everything  within 
their  reach.  Mr.  Watterson  knows  something  of  the  corruption 
that  developed  under  the  carpet-bag  reign  which  followed  the  civil 
war,  and  ought  to  be  able  to  make  some  estimate  of  the  mal- 
feasance and  mis-feasance  which  can  be  expected  when  this  nation 
denies  self-evident  truths  and  encourages  infidelity  to  moral  pre- 
cepts. 

As  an  individual  can  better  afford  to  retain  his  character  rather 
than  grow  rich  by  dishonorable  means,  so  the  democratic  party 
can  better  afford  to  appeal  to  the  conscience  of  the  people,  even 
though  it  remains  out  of  power,  than  to  enjoy  power  at  the  ex- 
pense of  its  principles.  "What  shall  it  profit  a  man  if  he  gain 
the  whole  world  and  lose  his  own  soul  ?"  What  shall  it  profit  the 
democratic  party  if  it  gain  power  and  lose  the  spirit  that  has 
made  it  indestructible?  What  shall  it  profit  a  nation  if  its  flag 
floats  over  every  sea  and  its  garrisons  terrify  every  land  if,  in  the 
language  of  Lincoln,  it  loses  "the  spirit  which  prizes  liberty  as 
the  heritage  of  all  people  in  all  lands  everywhere?" 


"WHAT  ABOUT  NEXT  WEEK?" 

When  President  McKinley  was  addressing  the  laboring  men  at 
San  Francisco  and  congratulating  them  upon  their  "prosperity" 
and  "contentment,"  one  brawny  wage-earner  arose  and  asked, 
"What  about  next  week?"  Of  course,  he  was  guilty  of  some  dis- 
courtesy in  thus  interrupting  a  meeting  made  notable  by  the  pres- 
ence of  the  chief  executive,  and  his  companions  beckoned  to  him 
to  be  silent.  But  he  could  not  have  asked  a  more  embarrassing 
question  at  a  republican  meeting.  The  administration  is  living  in 
the  present,  with  no  thought  or  plan  for  the  future.  It  might  be 
well  for  the  president  to  consider  the  simple  question  propounded 
by  the  California  toiler. 

The  railroads  are  consolidating,  shutting  out  competition,  issuing 


154  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

watered  stock,  and  making  worthless  securities  dividend-paying  by 
the  exercise  of  arbitrary  power  in  the  fixing  of  rates.  They  are 
having  things  all  their  own  way  now,  but — "What  about  next 
week?" 

The  trusts  are  swallowing  the  industries,  building  up  enormous 
fortunes,  and  levying  tribute  upon  the  entire  country.  They  may 
be  willing  to  contribute  largely  to  the  republican  campaign  fund 
to-day,  but  what  will  be  the  effect  upon  industry? — "What  about 
next  week?" 

The  money  changers  are  in  control  of  our  finances,  they  can 
expand  or  contract  the  currency  at  will;  they  can  make  more 
out  of  the  fluctuations  of  the  market  than  they  can  in  legitimate 
business;  they  rule  with  a  rod  of  iron,  but  what  is  the  end? — 
"What  about  next  week  ?" 

Imperialism  is  rampant,  speculators  are  planning  forays  against 
distant  lands;  carpet  baggers  are  growing  fat  and  respect  for 
political  principles  and  moral  precepts  is  being  lost  sight  of ;  some 
people  are  making  money  out  of  it,  but — "What  about  next  week  ?" 
If  the  republicans  are  not  too  busy  to  think,  if  "prosperity"  leaves 
them  time  for  reflection,  they  will  find  it  worth  while  to  answer 
to  their  own  satisfaction,  if  they  can,  that  pertinent  and  per- 
plexing question,  "What  about  next  week?" 


BLACKLISTING. 

Judge  Frank  Baker,  of  the  Cook  County  (111.)  Circuit  Court,  has 
rendered  an  important  decision  on  the  subject  of  blacklisting.  The 
following  is  a  statement  of  the  facts,  together  with  his  reasoning: 

Plaintiff  alleges  that  she  is  an  expert  can  labeler,  able  to  earn 
$15  per  week  at  her  trade.  That  defendants  are  canners  at  the 
Union  Stock  Yards  and  are  all  the  persons  engaged  in  that  busi- 
ness at  that  place.  That  upon  February  5,  1900,  defendants  ma- 
liciously, etc.,  agreed  and  conspired  together  not  to  employ  any 
employe  or  any  one  of  them  who  should  go  out  on  a  strike  or  quit 
on  account  of  a  disagreement  as  to  wages,  except  by  consent  of  the 
former  employer.  That  for  two  years  before  February  5,  1900, 
plaintiff  was  employed  by  defendants  Libby,  McNeil  &  Libby,  and 
on  that  day  quit  because  of  disagreement  as  to  wages.  That  she 
afterward  applied  to  defendants,  Armour  &  Co.,  and  Fairbank 
Canning  Company,  for  employment,  and  was  denied  such  employ- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  155 

ment  because  of  said  agreement  and  conspiracy.  All  this,  it  is 
alleged,  was  done  maliciously  with  the  intent  to  injure  plaintiff. 
Defendants  demur  to  the  declaration. 

The  case  has  been  fully  and  most  ably  argued,  both  orally  and 
in  writing.  I  shall  not  review  the  numerous  authorities  cited  nor 
attempt  to  do  more  than  state  my  conclusions  and  the  rules  of  law 
upon  which  they  rest. 

"When  damage  is  sustained  by  one  person  from  the  wrongful 
act  of  another,  an  action  for  compensation  is  given  to  the  injured 
party  against  the  wrongdoer."  By  wrongful  act  is  to  be  under- 
stood not  an  act  wrongful  in  morals  only,  but  an  act  wrongful  in 
law.  An  act  is  wrongful  in  law  if  it  infringes  upon  the  right  of 
another,  and  not  otherwise.  An  act  which  does  not  infringe  upon 
any  right  of  a  person  is  not,  as  to  such  person,  wrongful.  One  has 
a  right  to  decline  to  enter  the  service  of  another,  and  several  per- 
sons, acting  jointly  in  pursuance  of  an  agreement  to  that  effect, 
have  the  right  to  so  decline.  So,  one  has  the  right  to  decline  to 
employ  another,  and  several  persons,  acting  jointly  in  pursuance 
of  an  agreement  to  that  effect,  have  the  right  to  so  decline. 

The  existence  of  malice,  of  a  malicious  intent  to  injure  a  per- 
son, will  not  convert  an  act  which  does  not  infringe  any  right  of 
such  person  into  a  wrongful  act  or  a  civil  wrong.  It  follows  that, 
in  my  opinion,  the  facts  and  agreements  of  the  defendants  set 
forth  in  the  declaration  cannot  be  held  to  infringe  upon  any  right 
of  the  plaintiff,  and  therefore  are  not  as  to  her,  in  law,  wrongful. 
The  demurrer  is  sustained." 

Hon.  W.  J.  Strong,  who  has  been  attorney  in  several  similar 
cases,  representing  the  plaintiffs  and  the  case  has  attracted  much 
attention. 

The  political  question  involved  is  even  more  important  than  the 
legal  one ;  that  is  to  say,  whether  the  Judge  is  right  from  a  legal 
standpoint  in  sustaining  the  demurrer  is  not  nearly  so  important 
as  the  question,  "should  the  law  protect  the  employe  from  black- 
listing?" 

If  the  court  was  in  error,  relief  may  be  had  by  appeal  to  a 
higher  court;  if  the  law  is  not  broad  enough  to  protect  employes 
it  can  be  amended.  The  question  of  greatest  importance  is,  there- 
fore, whether  a  man  discharged  from  one  corporation  should  be 
prevented  from  obtaining  employment  elsewhere  by  agreement 
among  the  employers.  This  question  is  a  political  one  to  be 
decided  by  the  law-makers. 

The  democratic  national  platform  adopted  in  1900  contained 
the  following  plank: 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 

We  are  opposed  to  government  by  injunction;  we  denounce 
the  blacklist  and  favor  arbitration  as  a  means  of  settling  disputes 
between  corporations  and  their  employes." 

Each  one  will  decide  the  question  according  to  his  sympathies. 
Those  who  think  that  an  employe  ought  to  be  thankful  for  the 
opportunity  to  work  and  should  accept  without  complaint  whatever 
the  employer  gives,  will  probably  feel  that  the  employers  have  a 
right  to  combine  and  blacklist  any  one  who  is  lacking  in  gratitude 
or  contentment.  Those,  on  the  other  hand,  who  regard  an  em- 
ploye as  a  man  having  the  same  rights  as  his  fellow-man,  and 
owing  a  duty  to  his  family  as  well  as  to  his  employer,  will  feel 
that  the  employe  should  not  be  shut  out  of  all  remunerative  em- 
ployment because  he  and  one  employer  differ  upon  wages,  terms, 
or  conditions. 

The  position  taken  by  the  democratic  platform  is  eminently 
sound.  If  a  man  is  skilled  in  a  particular  industry,  and  blacklist- 
ing is  agreed  upon  by  all  the  employers  in  that  industry,  the 
employe  is  to  a  large  extent  a  slave,  because  if  he  is  not  satisfied 
with  the  terms  fixed  by  his  employer  he  cannot  secure  like  em- 
ployment elsewhere,  and  to  go  outside  of  the  business  in  which  he 
has  skill  would  be  to  throw  away  all  the  benefits  arising  from  ex- 
perience and  training. 

A  blacklist  agreed  upon  among  employers  brings  to  the  em- 
ployer many  of  the  advantages,  and  imposes  upon  the  employe 
many  of  the  hardships,  arising  from  a  complete  monopoly.  If 
Judge  Baker's  decision  is  sustained  in  the  higher  courts,  black- 
listing will  become  an  issue  in  Illinois  politics,  and  there  is  little 
doubt  how  it  will  be  settled  when  the  people  have  a  chance  to 
vote  upon  it.  Lincoln  said  of  the  Dred  Scott  decision  that  courts 
could  not  settle  political  questions;  that  such  questions  must  be 
settled  by  the  people.  But  courts  can  center  public  attention  upon 
a  question  and  often  a  court  decision  is  made  the  basis  of  a 
political  movement. 

The  democratic  party's  platform  utterance  on  this  subject  would 
have  been  more  appreciated  by  laboring  men  if  Judge  Baker's  de- 
cision had  been  rendered  before  the  late  election. 


The  Commoner  Condensed 


157 


BEFORE  AND  AFTER. 

During  the  campaign  of  1900,  the  republican  papers  gave  great 
prominence  to  those  democrats  who  declared  their  intention  of 
voting  the  republican  ticket.  On  the  morning  of  October  18,  the 
La  Crosse  Chronicle  printed  an  interview  with  Mr.  Albert  Hirsh- 
heimer  in  which  that  gentleman  gave  his  reasons  for  voting  for 
the  re-election  of  Mr.  McKinley. 

A  few  days  ago,  Mr.  Hirshheimer's  company  sold  out  to  a 
trust  and  the  La  Crosse  Republican  and  Leader  of  May  8  con- 
tained an  interview  with  Mr.  Hirshheimer  in  which  he  gave  the 
reasons  for  selling.  He  began  business  in  1865 — seven  years  before 
silver  was  demonetized — and  the  agitation  of  the  money  question 
never  drove  him  out  of  business,  but  the  trusts  have  forced  him 
to  sell.  Below  will  be  found  extracts  from  his  two  interviews: 


BEFORE OCTOBER   18,   1900. 

Said  Mr.  Hirshheimer:  I 
voted  once  for  Abraham  Lin- 
coln, and  for  William  McKin- 
ley four  years  ago,  and  those  are 
the  only  exceptions  to  my  vot- 
ing for  the  nominees  of  the 
democratic  party  on  national 
candidates.  I  shall  vote  for  the 
re-election  of  President  McKin- 
ley. 

My  reasons,  you  ask ;  I  don't 
court  newspaper  notoriety,  but  I 
will  give  my  reasons  for  voting 
for  President  McKinley.  They 
are  purely  business  reasons.  We 
want  stability  in  our  financial 
affairs,  as  well  as  stability  in 
our  tariff  laws.  I  do  not  con- 
sider that  a  high  taraiff  or  a 
low  tariff  makes  much  differ- 
ence. The  trouble  comes  from 
anticipating  changes  every  two 
or  four  years.  I  submit  that  the 
commercial  interests  of  the 
country  should  not  be  made  the 
football  in  the  game  of  the  poli- 
ticians, 


AFTER — MAY   8,   1901. 

Said  President  A.  Hirsh- 
heimer: The  Packers  Package 
Company  was  forced  to  sell  out 
to  the  trust.  They  control  the 
tin  output  and  they  have  been 
hindering  us  so  during  the  past 
month  that  we  have  not  been 
able  to  run  our  factory  only 
one-half  its  capacity.  They  have 
refused  to  deliver  us  the  tin 
ordered,  shipping  only  one  or 
two  cars  a  week.  Thus  we  eith- 
er had  to  sell  out  to  them  or 
fight  them.  We  could  not  do  the 
latter  thing,  for  we  could  not 
get  the  tin  with  which  to  make 
our  product,  and  carry  on  the 
fight.  Therefore,  we  simply  had 
to  sell  out  to  the  trust.  It  was 
either  that  or  lose  our  money. 


158  The  Commoner  Condensed 


THE  RICHMOND  TIMES'  MISTAKE. 

The  Richmond  (Virginia)  Times  has  been  one  of  the  most 
violent  opponents  of  democratic  principles  as  enunciated  in  the 
Chicago  platform.  Its  zeal  in  the  support  of  a  republicanized 
democracy  has  only  been  equalled  by  the  ability  with  which  it 
has  misrepresented  the  position  of  the  democratic  party  upon 
public  questions.  In  a  recent  editorial  it  repeats  what  it  has 
so  often  said  about  those  who  are  opposed  to  monopolies  and 
other  republican  methods  of  enriching  a  few  at  the  expense  of 
the  many.  It  takes  for  its  text  an  editorial  which  appeared  in 
the  Atlanta  Constitution,  and  after  charging  the  Constitution 
with  inconsistency  says: 

Everybody  knows  that  Mr.  Bryan's  crusade  was  against  pov- 
erty. He  has  insisted  that  there  ought  to  be  no  such  thing  as 
poverty.  He  has  made  war  upon  millionaires  and  plutocrats,  and 
the  whole  tendency  of  his  gospel  has  been  to  put  all  men  on  the 
same  plane  and  to  make  even-  man  as  rich  as  his  neighbor.  He 
does  not  believe,  if  we  understand  him,  that  there  should  be 
plutocrats  on  the  one  hand  and  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of 
water  on  the  other.  He  does  not  believe  that  there  should  be 
master  and  man,  but  that  every  man  should  be  his  own  master 
and  serve  nobody  but  himself. 

As  I  have  defended  the  principles  set  forth  in  the  platforms 
adopted  in  1896  and  1900,  it  is  not  necessary  to  regard  the  Times' 
editorial  as  a  personal  criticism.  It  is  rather  directed  against  all 
members  of  the  party  who  have  supported  the  platforms  referred 
to.  While  the  democrats  believe  that  there  should  be  no  such 
thing  as  a  "plutocrat"  or  a  "master,"  it  is  not  true  that  they 
expect  to  eliminate  poverty,  neither  do  they  expect  to  make  every 
man  as  rich  as  his  neighbor.  The  Times  discloses  either 
great  ignorance  or  great  insincerity  in  the  language  quoted. 
In  accepting  the  presidential  nomination  in  1896  I  quoted  with 
approval  the  words  of  Andrew  Jackson,  to  wit: 

"Distinctions  in  society  will  always  exist  under  every  just 
government.  Equality  of  talents,  of  education,  or  of  wealth  can- 
not be  produced  by  human  institutions.  In  the  full  enjoyment  of 
the  gifts  of  heaven,  and  the  fruits  of  superior  industry,  economy 
and  virtue,  every  man  is  equally  entitled  to  protection  by  law." 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  159 

In  commenting  upon  these  words  I  said: 

"We  yield  to  none  in  our  devotion  to  the  doctrine  just  enunciated. 
Our  campaign  has  not  for  its  object  the  reconstruction  of  society 
We  cannot  insure  to  the  vicious  the  fruits  of  a  virtuous  life; 
we  would  not  invade  the  home  of  the  provident,  in  order  to  supply 
the  wants  of  the  spendthrift;  we  do  not  propose  to  transfer  the 
rewards  of  industry  to  the  lap  of  indolence.  Property  is  and  will 
remain  the  stimulus  to  endeavor  and  the  compensation  for  toil." 

On  that  occasion  I  not  only  quoted  as  above  from  Jackson's 
veto  message  (with  which  the  Times  will  doubtless  agree), 
but  also  that  part  which  draws  the  line  between  legitimate  re- 
wards and  illegitimate  wealth.  If  Jackson  had  stopped  with  the 
words  above  quoted  he  would  be  more  popular  to-day  with  the 
newspapers  which  construe  as  an  attack  upon  property  every  effort 
to  protect  the  people  from  injustice ;  but  he  added : 

"But  when  the  laws  undertake  to  add  to  those  natural  and 
just  advantages  artificial  distinctions — to  grant  titles,  gratuitous 
and  exclusive  privileges — to  make  the  rich  richer  and  the  potent 
more  powerful — the  humble  members  of  society — the  farmers,  me- 
chanics, and  laborers — who  have  neither  the  time  nor  the  means 
of  securing  like  favors  for  themselves,  have  a  right  to  com- 
plain of  the  injustice  of  their  government." 

I  have  never  been  able  to  find  in  the  writings  of  any  states- 
man or  philosopher,  living  or  dead,  a  clearer  definition  of  the 
democratic  position.  I  have  never  found  a  democrat  who  dissented 
from  Jackson's  statement  on  this  subject. 

In  accepting  the  democratic  nomination  in  1900  these  views 
were  reiterated,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  extract  from 
my  Indianapolis  speech: 

"The  democratic  party  is  not  making  war  upon  the  honest 
acquisition  of  wealth ;  it  has  no  desire  to  discourage  economy,  in- 
dustry and  thrift.  On  the  contrary,  it  gives  to  every  citizen  the 
greatest  possible  stimulus  to  honest  toil  when  it  promises  him 
protection  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  proceeds  of  his  labor.  Property 
rights  are  most  secure  when  human  rights  are  most  respected. 
Democracy  strives  for  a  civilization  in  which  every  member  of 
society  will  share  according  to  his  merits.  No  one  has  a  right 
to  expect  from  society  more  than  a  fair  compensation  for  the 


160  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

service  which  he  renders  to  society.  If  he  secures  more  it  is  at 
the  expense  of  some  one  else.  It  is  no  injustice  to  him  to  pre- 
vent his  doing  injustice  to  another.  To  him  who  would,  either 
through  class  legislation  or  in  the  absence  of  necessary  legis- 
lation, trespass  upon  the  rights  of  another  the  democratic  party 
says,  'Thou  shalt  not.'  '' 

This  speech  was  widely  circulated  during  the  campaign  and 
no  democrat  has  ever  complained  to  me  of  the  sentiment  ex- 
pressed. 

The  democratic  party  does  not  expect  to  destroy  poverty, 
because  poverty  can  never  be  destroyed  until  the  members  of 
the  human  race  so  nearly  approach  perfection  in  thought,  and  act, 
that  they  will  not  incur  the  penalties  prescribed  for  the  violation 
of  natural  laws.  The  democratic  party  is  protesting  against  those 
things  which  interfere  with  the  natural  distribution  of  rewards 
and  punishments.  It  is  protesting  against  legislation  which  gath- 
ers from  millions  in  order  to  give  an  undeserved  advantage  to 
hundreds,  or  at  most,  thousands.  The  principles  of  the  party, 
whether  applied  to  the  tariff  question,  the  money  question,  the 
trust  question,  the  question  of  imperialism  or  to  any  other  question, 
are  intended  to  secure  equal  rights  to  all  and  to  deny  special 
privileges  to  any.  Equality  in  rights  does  not  mean  equality 
in  possessions  or  equality  in  enjoyment.  A  man  may  have  a  right 
to  the  proceeds  of  his  toil,  but  if  he  does  not  toil  there  will 
be  no  proceeds,  or  if  he  toils  without  intelligence  to  direct  his 
toil  the  proceeds  will  be  less  than  if  he  toils  with  intelligence. 
Every  man  has  a  right  to  "life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit  of  happi- 
ness," but  he  can  make  his  life  worthless,  he  can  be  indifferent 
to  his  liberty,  and  he  can  so  act  as  to  secure  misery  instead  of 
happiness.  Human  rights  are  equal  before  the  law,  but  the  re- 
wards ought  to  be  in  proportion  to  virtue,  to  industry  and  to 
discretion. 

The  position  of  the  democratic  party  has  been  so  plainly 
stated  that  no  one  can  give  a  valid  excuse  for  not  understanding 
it,  and  my  own  position  has  been  stated  so  often  that  no  one 
who  cares  to  know  it  need  be  in  doubt. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  161 


EMPEROR  McKINLEY. 

By  a  vote  of  five  to  four  the  Supreme  Court  has  declared  Presi- 
dent McKinley  emperor  of  Porto  Eico,  and  according  to  the  press 
dispatches  the  emperor  has  gladly  and  gratefully  accepted  the  title 
and  authority  thus  conferred  upon  him  by  the  highest  judicial 
tribunal  of  the  land. 

As  the  last  issue  of  THE  COMMONER  was  going  to  press,  Justice 
Brown  began  reading  the  opinion  of  the  court  in  the  De  Lima  case 
and  as  the  decision  was  against  the  government  in  that  case  it  was 
at  first  thought  that  the  inhabitants  of  Porto  Rico  had  been  brought 
under  the  protection  of  the  Constitution.  But  those  who  were  en- 
couraged to  believe  that  the  Constitution  had  caught  up  with  the 
flag  were  doomed  to  disappointment.  In  the  Downes  case,  decided 
immediately  afterwards,  a  majority  of  the  court,  composed  of  Jus- 
tices Brown,  Gray,  White,  Shiras  and  McKenna,  held  that  Congress 
could  deal  with  Porto  Rico  (and  the  same  logic  applies  to  the 
Philippines)  without  regard  to  the  limitations  of  the  Constitution. 
Chief  Justice  Fuller  and  Associate  Justices  Harlan,  Peckham  and 
Brewer  dissented  in  strong  and  vigorous  language,  but  the  opinion 
of  the  majority — even  a  majority  of  one — stands  until  it  is  re- 
versed. This  is  one  of  the  most  important  decisions,  if  not  the 
most  important,  ever  rendered  by  the  court;  it  not  only  declares 
that  Congress  is  greater  than  the  Constitution  which  created  it — the 
creature  greater  than  the  creator — but  it  denies  the  necessity  for  a 
written  constitution.  The  position  taken  by  the  court  is  defended, 
or  rather  excused,  by  reasoning  which,  if  followed  out,  will  destroy 
constitutional  liberty  in  the  United  States.  Every  reason  given 
by  Justice  Brown  could  be  used  with  even  more  force  to  support 
a  decision  nullifying  all  limitations  placed  by  the  Constitution  on 
Congress  when  dealing  with  the  citizens  of  the  several  states.  If 
the  Porto  Ricans  can  trust  the  wisdom  and  justice  of  a  congress 
which  they  DO  NOT  ELECT  and  CANNOT  REMOVE,  why  do  the  people 
of  the  United  States  need  a  constitution  to  protect  them  from  a 
congress  which  they  DO  ELECT  and  CAN  REMOVE?  The  decision  in 
effect  declares  that  the  people  are  not  the  source  of  power;  it  de- 
fends "taxation  without  representation"  and  denies  that  govern- 
ments derive  "their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  gov- 
erned." 


1 62  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

It  assails  the  foundations  of  the  Kepublic  and  does  so  on  the 
ground  of  expediency. 

The  dissenting  opinions  bristle  with  precedents  and  burn  with 
patriotism;  they  ought  to  awaken  conscientious  republicans  to  a 
realization  of  the  meaning  of  imperialism. 

This  decision,  like  the  Dred  Scott  decision,  raises  a  political 
issue  which  must  be  settled  by  the  people.  The  Supreme  Court 
has  joined  with  the  President  and  Congress  in  an  attempt  to  change 
the  form  of  our  government,  but  there  yet  remains  an  appeal  to 
the  people. 

The  election  of  1900  did  not  decide  this  question,  for  the  re- 
publicans denied  that  they  favored  imperialism,  but  they  can  deny 
it  no  longer.  They  must  now  admit  their  repudiation  of  the  Con- 
stitution as  well  as  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

So  much  space  is  given  to  the  majority  and  minority  opinions 
(see  pages  five  to  eleven)  that  extended  comment  is  impossible  at 
this  time,  but  the  discussion  of  the  subject  will  be  continued  in 
future  issues. 

A  STATEMENT  OP  THE  CASE. 

The  opinions  delivered  by  the  United  States  Supreme  Court 
in  the  Porto  Eican  cases  are  so  important,  not  only  for  the  present 
but  for  the  future,  that  it  behooves  every  American  citizen  to  thor- 
oughly understand  their  purport.  In  these  opinions,  three  separate 
periods  were  treated,  and  it  will  be  well  to  consider  them  in  proper 
order. 

Between  the  time  when  General  Miles  took  possession  of  Porto 
Eico  and  the  time  of  the  ratification  of  the  peace  treaty,  the  mili- 
tary authorities  established  certain  military  tariff  duties.  The 
court  sustained  these  duties  on  the  broad  ground  of  military 
authority  and  necessity. 

After  the  ratification  of  the  peace  treaty  and  prior  to  the 
enactment  of  the  Foraker  law,  in  which  law  the  present  Porto 
Eican  tariff  duties  are  set  forth,  tariff  duties  were  levied  on  goods 
coming  from  Porto  Eico  to  the  United  States  under  the  terms 
and  rates  of  the  Dingley  law.  On  this  point  the  court  held  that 
the  Dingley  law  contemplated  the  levying  of  duties  on  foreign 
goods  from  foreign  countries;  that  after  the  ratification  of  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  163 

peace  treaty  Porto  Eico  became  "domestic"  territory,  and  there- 
fore the  Dingley  duties  could  not  prevail. 

In  the  Downes  case  the  court  took  up  that  feature  of  the 
Foraker  law  which  established  tariff  duties  on  goods  coming  from 
Porto  Eico  to  the  United  States.  The  court  held  these  duties  to 
be  lawful  on  the  ground  that  Congress  had  full  authority  to  make 
rules,  regulations  and  laws  for  the  government  of  "domestic"  ter- 
ritory other  than  states. 

In  order  to  fully  understand  these  opinions  it  must  be  known 
that  in  ruling  that  the  Dingley  tariff  rates  could  not  prevail  against 
Porto  Eico,  the  court  did  not  act  on  the  theory  that  the  Constitu- 
tion followed  the  flag  during  any  of  these  periods  under  considera- 
tion. This  ruling  was  made  because,  in  the  opinion  of  the  court, 
a  law  enacted  for  the  purpose  of  levying  tariff  duties  against  a 
foreign  country  could  not  be  applied  in  levying  tariff  duties 
against  a  country  that  was  not  "foreign."  In  other  words,  if 
immediately  after  the  ratification  of  the  peace  treaty,  Congress 
had  enacted  a  law  levying  the  Dingley  rates  specially  against 
Porto  Eico,  those  rates  would  have  prevailed.  In  the  court's  opin- 
ion, the  legality  of  any  tariff  rate  between  Porto  Eico  and  the 
United  States  simply  waited  upon  a*  formal  act  of  Congress  estab- 
lishing those  rates  as  applying  to  Porto  Eico. 

The  logic  of  this  opinion  as  it  applies  to  the  right  of  Con- 
gress to  levy  tariff  customs  would  make  it  possible  for  Congress  to 
levy  tariff  duties  on  articles  coming  from  any  territory  of  the 
United  States. 

With  respect  to  our  new  possessions,  the  decision  is  an  unfair 
one  because  it  denies  to  them  equal  trade  privileges  with  other 
portions  of  the  United  States  whose  sovereignty  has  been  estab- 
lished over  them,  and  the  purpose  of  the  Constitution  in  providing 
for  equal  trade  privileges  was  that  no  section  subject  to  United 
States  sovereignty  should  ever  become  the  victim  of  discrimination. 
This  principle  is  in  line  with  the  very  foundation  principles  of 
this  government,  which  contemplated  that  all  the  people  of  the 
United  States  should  have  equal  privileges,  should  be  exempt  from 
discriminations,  and  should  enjoy  the  immunities  which  the  con- 
stitution makers  conceived  to  be  essential  to  the  perpetuity  of  free 
institutions. 


164  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


THE  ATTITUDE  OF  ALIENS. 

In  the  opinion  delivered  by  Justice  Brown  in  the  Downes 
case,  the  Supreme  Court  went  much  farther  than  the  consideration 
of  the  right  to  levy  tariff  duties.  Justice  Brown  contended  that 
power  to  acquire  territory  hy  treaty  "implies  not  only  the  power 
to  govern  such  territory,  but  to  prescribe  on  what  terms  the  United 
States  will  receive  its  inhabitants,  and  what  their  status  shall  be 
in  what  Chief  Justice  Marshall  termed  'The  American  empire.' " 

Justice  Brown  then  distinctly  declared  that  the  annexation  of 
territory  did  not  make  the  inhabitants  of  that  territory  citizens 
of  the  United  States.  He  admitted,  however,  that  whatever  may 
be  finally  decided  as  to  the  status  of  these  islands  and  their  in- 
habitants "it  does  not  follow  that  in  the  meantime  the  people 
are  in  the  matter  of  public  rights  unprotected  by  the  provisions  of 
our  Constitution  and  subjected  to  the  mere  arbitrary  control  of 
Congress.  Even  if  regarded  as  aliens,  they  are  entitled,  under 
the  principles  of  the  Constitution,  to  be  protected  in  life,  liberty 
and  property." 

Here  we  find  the  Supreme  Court's  declaration  of  the  status 
of  the  people  of  these  islands.  Although  the  Constitution  does 
not  follow  the  flag,  "under  the  principles  of  the  Constitution"  the 
people  of  our  new  possessions  are  entitled  "to  be  protected  in  life, 
liberty  and  property."  In  other  words,  although  cut  away  from 
all  former  allegiance,  although  taken  away  from  former  sover- 
eigns and  denied  the  right  of  building  a  sovereignty  for  them- 
selves, and  although  required  to  render  allegiance  to  this  country, 
yet  they  are  in  the  attitude  of  "aliens,"  they  are  to  be  taxed  with- 
out representation,  and  to  be  governed  without  having  a  voice  in 
the  government.  This  is  imperialism  pure  and  simple. 

DELEGATED   POWERS. 

Throughout  the  majority  opinion  delivered  by  Justice  Brown 
runs  the  theory  that  the  American  Congress  may  do  anything  not 
forbidden  in  the  Constitution.  This  is  one  of  the  most  repugnant 
features  of  this  opinion.  Justice  Brown  seems  to  have  searched 
the  Constitution  for  prohibitions  rather  than  for  that  grant  of 
power  which  the  American  people  have  always  conceived  to  be  the 
true  office  of  that  instrument.  In  one  place  Justice  Brown  said: 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  165 

"If  in  limiting  the  power  which  Congress  was  to  exercise  within  the 
United  States,  it  was  also  intended  to  limit  it  with  regard  to  such 
territories  as  the  people  of  the  United  States  should  thereafter 
acquire,  such  limitations  should  have  been  expressed."  In  an- 
other place  he  refers  to  a  constitutional  clause  as  "suggestive 
of  no  limitations  upon  the  power  of  Congress  in  dealing  with  ter- 
ritories." In  another  place  he  says  that  "no  construction  of  the 
Constitution  should  be  adopted  which  would  prevent  Congress  from 
considering  each  ease  upon  its  merits  unless  the  language  of  the 
instrument  imperatively  demands  it."  And  in  his  conclusion  Jus- 
tice Brown,  referring  to  the  right  or  authority  of  Congress  to  do 
whatever  it  sees  fit  to  do  said:  "We  decline  to  hold  that  there  is 
anything  in  the  Constitution  to  forbid  such  action." 

The  American  system  of  government  is  not  a  complicated  one. 
Indeed,  its  strength  and  success  have  depended,  in  a  marked  de- 
gree, upon  its  very  simplicity.  For  years  we  have  been  taught,  to 
look  in  the  Constitution  for  powers  delegated  to  the  United  States 
and  for  powers  prohibited  by  the  Constitution  to  the  states.  For 
years  we  have  been  taught  that  the  federal  constitution  was  a  grant 
of  power,  while  the  state  constitution  was  a  limitation  of  power; 
yet  the  opinion  delivered  by  Mr.  Justice  Brown  encourages  the 
notion  that  our  federal  authorities  may  do  whatever  they  think 
necessary  to  be  done  when  the  same  is  not  specifically  forbidden 
in  the  federal  constitution. 

The  dangers  arising  from  such  an  irrational  un-American 
notion  will  depend  entirely  upon  the  character  and  disposition  of 
men  in  authority.  A  written  constitution  has  been  the  safeguard 
of  American  institutions,  and  once  it  shall  be  fully  established 
that  that  Constitution  is  a  limitation  rather  than  a  grant  of  power, 
this  government  and  its  people  are  completely  at  the  mercy  of  the 
men  who  happen  to  be  in  authority. 

The  mischievous  character  of  Justice  Brown's  decision  on  this 
point  is  indicated  in  one  paragraph  wherein  he  said — "The  states 
could  only  delegate  to  Congress  such  powers  as  they  themselves 
possess,  and  as  they  have  no  power  to  acquire  new  territory  they 
have  none  to  delegate  in  that  connection."  This  was  Justice 
Brown's  apology  for  the  absence  from  the  Constitution  of  a  dele- 
gation of  power  to  Congress  to  deal  with  newly  acquired  territory. 
He  would  then  hold,  that  Congress,  the  creature  of  the  Constitution, 


1 66  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

had  greater  powers  than  the  body  that  created  the  Constitution 
itself.  In  order  to  avoid  the  well  established  theory  that  the  Con- 
stitution is  a  grant  of  power,  we  have,  according  to  Justice  Brown's 
opinion,  only  to  ascertain  that  the  grantors  of  power  were  with- 
out authority  in  a  certain  respect  in  order  to  give  to  the  creatures 
of  the  Constitution  whatever  authority  and  power  those  creatures 
see  fit  to  exercise. 

A   RADICAL   CHANGE. 

Justice  Harlan  discusses  this  point  at  considerable  length, 
and  his  words  are  quoted  here  that  the  reader  may  note  the  contrast 
between  his  views  and  those  expressed  by  the  majority  of  the  court 
through  Justice  Brown.  Justice  Harlan  says: 

I  take  leave  to  say  that  if  the  principles  now  announced 
should  ever  receive  the  sanction  of  a  majority  of  this  court,  the 
result  will  be  a  radical  and  mischievous  change  in  our  system  of 
government.  We  will,  in  that  event,  pass  from  the  era  of  consti- 
tutional liberty,  guarded  and  protected  by  a  written  constitution, 
into  an  era  of  legislative  absolutism,  in  respect  of  many  rights 
that  are  dear  to  all  peoples  who  love  freedom. 

In  my  opinion,  Congress  has  no  existence  and  can  exercise 
no  authority  outside  the  Constitution.  Still  less  is  it  true  that 
Congress  can  deal  with  new  territories  just  as  other  nations  have 
done  or  may  do  with  their  new  territories.  This  nation  is  under 
the  control  of  a  written  constitution,  which  is  the  supreme  law  of 
the  land,  and  the  only  source  of  the  powers  which  our  government, 
or  any  branch  or  officer  of  it,  may  exercise  at  any  time  or  at  any 
place.  Monarchical  and  despotic  governments,  unrestrained  in  their 
powers  by  written  constitutions,  may  do  with  newly  acquired  ter- 
ritories what  this  government  may  not  do  consistently  with  our 
fundamental  law. 

The  idea  that  this  country  may  acquire  territories  anywhere 
upon  the  earth,  by  conquest  or  treaty,  and  hold  them  as  mere 
colonies  or  provinces,  is  wholly  inconsistent  with  the  spirit  and 
genius  as  well  as  with  the  words  of  the  Constitution.  The  glory  of 
our  American  system  of  government  is  that  it  was  created  by  a 
written  constitution  which  protects  the  people  against  the  exercise 
of  arbitrary,  unlimited  power,  and  the  limits  of  which  may  not  be 
passed  by  the  government  it  created,  or  by  any  branch  of  it,  or  even 
by  the  people  who  ordained  it, -except  by  amendment. 

It  will  be  an  evil  day  for  American  liberty  if  the  theory  of  a 
government  outside  of  the  supreme  law  of  the  land  finds  lodgment 
in  our  constitutional  jurisprudence. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  167 


THE  AMERICAN  EMPIRE. 

The  court's  decision  was  based  upon  expediency.  In  the  opin- 
ion to  which  Justice  Harlan  referred  as  an  effort  to  establish  "two 
governments  in  this  country — one  resting  on  the  Constitution  for 
Americans — the  other  carried  on  in  the  national  capitol  by  the 
same  people,  without  the  constitution  for  a  subject  people,"  Justice 
Brown  said:  "A  false  step  at  this  time  might  be  fatal  to  the  de- 
velopment of  what  Chief  Justice  Marshall  called  'The  American 
Empire.' " 

It  would  seem  that  this  phrase  was  employed  by  way  of  apology 
or  defense  for  the  American  empire  which  Justice  Brown  and  his 
colleagues  were  seeking  to  erect  upon  the  ruins  of  the  American 
Constitution.  When  the  great  Marshall  used  the  term  "the  Ameri- 
can empire/'  he  referred  to  an  empire  of  love,  an  empire  of  perfect 
republicanism,  an  empire  of  hearts,  an  empire  in  which  the  people 
reigned  supreme  and  the  congress,  the  executive  and  the  courts 
were  the  servants,  rather  than  the  masters,  of  the  people.  He 
referred  to  "the  American  empire"  as  expressing  the  perfect  reign 
of  American  principles  on  every  foot  of  American  territory,  and 
the  enjoyment  of  American  rights,  privileges  and  immunities  on 
every  foot  of  soil  within  the  American  domain. 

It  was  in  1820  that  Chief  Justice  Marshall  used  this  term. 
The  court  at  that  time  had  under  consideration  the  constitutional 
provision  that  "all  duties,  imports  and  excises  shall  be  uniform 
throughout  the  United  States."  On  this  point  Chief  Justice  Mar- 
shall said:  "Does  this  term  (The  United  States)  designate  the 
whole  or  any  portion  of  the  American  empire?  Certainly  this 
question  can  admit  of  but  one  answer.  It  is  the  name  given  to  our 
great  republic  which  is  composed  of  states  and  territories.  The 
District  of  Columbia  or  the  territory  west  of  the  Missouri  river  is 
not  less  within  the  United  States  than  Maryland  or  Pennsylvania 
and  it  is  not  less  necessary  on  the  principles  of  our  Constitution 
that  uniformity  in  the  imposition  of  imposts,  duties  and  excises 
should  be  observed  in  the  one  than  in  the  other." 

What  a  difference,  then,  between  "the  American  empire"  of 
the  great  Marshall  and  the  American  empire  of  Mr.  Justice  Brown  ! 

Marshall's  "American  empire"  was  "our  great  republic  whir^ 
is  composed  of  states  and  territories."  The  American  empire  of 


i68  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Mr.  Justice  Brown  contemplates  "two  governments  in  this  country ; 
one  resting  on  the  Constitution  for  Americans — the  other  carried 
on  in  the  national  capitol  by  the  same  people,  without  the  consti- 
tution and  for  a  subject  people." 

PERHAPS ! 

Justice  Brown  would  be  happier  if  he  had  contented  himself 
with  a  decision  without  attempting  to  give  any  reasons  for  it. 
There  are  many  vulnerable  passages  in  the  opinion  which  he  deliv- 
ered, but  there  is  one  passage  which  shows  the  uncertainty  pro- 
duced by  the  court's  decision.  Heretofore  the  people  have  regarded 
liberty  as  an  inalienable  right,  and  freedom  of  speech  and  freedom 
of  the  press  have  been  considered  absolutely  necessary  to  its  defense. 
Those  who  prize  liberty  and  regard  freedom  of  speech  as  above 
price  will  not  take  kindly  to  the  word  "perhaps,"  used  by  Justice 
Brown  in  discussing  this  subject.  He  said: 

To  sustain  the  judgment  in  the  case  under  consideration  it 
by  no  means  becomes  necessary  to  show  that  none  of  the  articles 
of  the  Constitution  applies  to  the  island  of  Porto  Rico.  There  is  a 
clear  distinction  between  such  prohibitions:  as  go  to  the  very  root  of 
the  power  of  Congress  to  act  at  all,  irrespective  of  time  or  place, 
and  such  as  are  operative  only  'throughout  the  United  States'  or 
among  the  several  States. 

Thus,  when  the  Constitution  declares  that  'no  bill  of  attainder 
or  ex-post  facto  law  shall  be  passed/  and  that  'no  title  of  nobility 
shall  be  granted  by  the  United  States,'  it  goes  to  the  competency 
of  Congress  to  pass  a  bill  of  that  description.  Perhaps  the  same 
remark  may  apply  to  the  first  amendment,  that  Congress  shall 
make  no  law  respecting  an  establishment  of  religion,  or  prohibiting 
the  free  exercise  thereof;  or  abridging  the  freedom  of  speech,  or 
of  the  press;  or  the  right  of  the  people  to  peacefully  assemble, 
and  to  petition  the  government  for  a  redress  of  grievances.'  We 
do  not  wish,  however,  to  be  understood  as  expressing  an  opinion 
how  far  the  bill  of  rights  contained  in  the  first  eight  amendments 
is  of  general  and  how  far  of  local  application/' 

He  is  not  willing  to  go  at  once  to  the  full  extent  of  his  logic. 
He  seems  to  have  faith  in  Congress ;  he  does  not  doubt  that  it  will 
deal  fairly  with  subject  races,  and  yet  he  shrinks  from  the  thought 
of  annihilating,  at  one  blow,  the  whole  bill  of  rights.  He  boldly 
declares  that  "there  is  a  clear  distinction  between  such  prohibi- 
tions as  go  to  the  very  root  of  the  power  of  Congress  to  act  at  all, 
irrespective  of  time  or  place,  and  such  as  are  operative  only 
'throughout  the  United  State?/  or  among  the  several  states" — not 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  169 

merely  a  distinction,  but  a  "clear  distinction."  And  yet  he  becomes 
perplexed  as  soon  as  he  begins  to  draw  the  "clear  distinction."  He 
is  quite  sure  that  Congress  is  entirely  prohibited  from  passing  a 
"bill  of  attainder  or  ex-post  facto  law,"  or  from  granting  "a  title 
of  nobility."  He  thinks  that  "perhaps,  the  same  remark  may  apply" 
to  laws  respecting  the  establishment  of  religion  to  laws  prohibiting 
free  speech,  to  laws  abridging  the  freedom  of  the  press,  and  lim- 
iting the  rights  of  the  people  to  peaceably  assemble  and  petition 
for  redress.  Perhaps !  PERHAPS  ! !  PEEHAPS  ! ! !  How  soon  he 
becomes  entangled  in  his  own  web !  And  this  is  constitutional  law ! 
Justice  Brown  wants  it  distinctly  understood  that  the  court  is  not 
at  this  time  "expressing  an  opinion  how  far  the  bill  of  rights  con- 
tained in  the  first  eight  amendments  is  of  general  and  how  far  of 
local  application."  It  will  be  interesting  to  American  patriots  to 
learn  that  rights  for  more  than  a  century  considered  inalienable  are 
now  divided  into  "general"  rights  and  "local"  rights;  that  some 
belong  to  every  one,  while  others  belong  only  to  some,  and  that  the 
some  who  enjoy  all  rights  are  to  decide  what  rights  are  safe  in  the 
keeping  of  others.  The  Boston  Herald  very  properly  says  that 
imperialism  "does  not  consist  in  having  an  emperor,  but  in  govern- 
ing a  country  on  the  well  established  basis  that  all  men  are  not 
free  and  equal."  It  is  not  the  form  but  the  essence  which  controls ; 
it  is  not  the  name,  emperor,  but  the  thing,  emperor,  that  is  hateful. 
The  Herald  adds : 

It  does  not  matter  whether  the  form  of  rule  is  that  of  a  czar, 
or  that  of  an  imperial  parliament  which  rules  over  subject  people 
in  the  name  of  a  conquering  and  governing  nation.  The  govern- 
ment of  England  is  just  as  imperialistic  as  the  government  of 
Eussia.  The  inhabitants  of  Somali  Coast  Protectorate,  an  English 
colony,  have  no  more  political  rights  accorded  to  them  by  the 
British  parliament,  representing  the  English  people,  than  the  czar 
accords  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  Crimea.  The  government  of 
England  is  imperial,  because,  while  arrogating  to  themselves  the 
right  to  do  what  they  please,  the  English  people  control  the  indus- 
trial and  political  existence  of  hundreds  of  millions  of  people,  and 
settle  these  in  such  manner  as  they  see  fit.  The  government  of  the 
czar  is  imperialistic  because,  while  arrogating  to  himself  the  right 
to  do  as  he  pleases,  the  czar  dictates  the  political  and  industrial 
development  of  scores  of  millions  of  people.  But  in  each  instance 
there  is  a  denial  of  the  democratic  theory  of  government,  that  the 
people  of  a  country  have  a  right  to  regulate  their  own  affairs. 


170  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  in  the  Downes  case  places 
the  inhabitants  of  Porto  Rico  at  the  mercy  of  Congress  and  the 
executive.  There  is  not  a  vital  right  that  they  can  claim  as  theirs. 
They  must  bow  before  the  American  flag;  they  must  swear  alle- 
giance to  it ;  they  must  follow  where  it  leads ;  their  property  and 
their  lives  may  be  demanded  for  its  maintenance  and  defense,  and 
yet  what  is  there  in  that  flag  which  represents  right  or  hope  for 
them  ?  Heretofore,  a  territory  has  looked  forward  to  the  time  and 
condition  of  statehood;  its  embarrassments  have  been  considered 
temporary  and  during  its  period  of  waiting  its  people  have  been 
protected  in  the  enjoyment  of  all  the  rights  guaranteed  to  citizens 
by  the  Constitution.  If  its  delegate  in  Congress  has  had  no  vote  its 
people  have  been  reasonably  safe  from  harm  because  the  general 
laws  made  for  the  territories  were  also  operative  in  the  states.  Now 
comes  a  new  order  of  things;  the  nation  has  caught  the  spirit  of 
conquest;  it  has  stained  its  hands  with  the  blood  of  subject  races. 
The  people  of  Porto  Rico  are  notified  that  they  are  to  be  with  us, 
but  not  of  us.  They  are  to  have  neither  our  government  nor  their 
own  government,  but  such  a  government  as  we  think  good  for  them. 
We  shall  buy  of  them  what  we  please  upon  our  own  terms ;  we  shall 
make  their  laws  for  them ;  we  shall  tax  them ;  we  shall  govern  them, 
and  if  they  dare  to  quote  our  Declaration  of  Independence  against 
us  we  shall  shoot  them.  "Perhaps,"  we  may  allow  them  freedom  of 
religion — five  Judges  in  a  court  of  nine,  speaking  for  us,  say  that 
we  are  not  sure  ,clxrat  this.  "Perhaps,"  we  may  allow  them  free- 
dom of  speech — the  question  is  not  settled ;  "perhaps,"  their  news- 
papers may  be  allowed  to  criticise  carpet-bag  officials — but  it  is 
not  yet  determined  whether  this  is  a  general  right  to  be  enjoyed 
by  the  Porto  Ricans  or  a  local  one  to  be  enjoyed  only  by  the  people 
of  the  United  States.  "Perhaps,"  they  may  be  allowed  to  peace- 
ably assemble — this  is  a  matter  for  future  consideration;  "per- 
haps," they  will  be  permitted  to  petition  for  redress  of  grievances^ 
we  shall  see  about  this  later. 

The  Porto  Ricans  had  heard  of  onr  revolutionary  war;  they 
had  read  our  state  papers ;  they  had  been  inspired  by  our  patriotic 
songs,  and  so,  when  General  Miles  landed  upon  the  Island,  the 
people  of  Porto  Rico  met  him  with  music  and  spread  flowers  in  his 
path.  Theirs  is  a  rude  awakening !  While  they  dreamed  of  Ameri- 
can liberty  the  republican  leaders  were  calculating  the  trade  value 
of  eight  hundred  thousand  Porto  Ricans. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  171 

"Perhaps,"  Justice  Brown's  opinion  will  convince  the  rank  and 
file  of  the  republican  party  that  our  institutions  are  in  danger  and 
that  the  republican  party  should  be  repudiated.  If  liberty  becomes 
a  "perhaps"  in  Porto  Rico  how  long  will  it  be  a  certainty  in  the 
United  States  ? 


DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. 

As  this  is  the  last  issue  of  THE  COMMONER  before  the  Fourth 
of  July,  the  Declaration  of  Independence  is  reproduced  in  order 
that  it  may  be  re-read  on  the  one  hundred  and  twenty-fifth  anni- 
versary of  its  adoption.  One  year  ago,  it  was  read  and  amid  great 
enthusiasm  endorsed  as  a  part  of  the  democratic  national  platform. 
This  document,  the  most  remarkable  state  paper  ever  penned,  was 
written  by  Thomas  Jefferson  and  to  its  maintenance  he  and  his  co- 
patriots  pledged  their  lives,  their  fortunes  and  their  sacred  honor. 
And  yet,  in  a  higher  and  broader  sense  it  was  not  the  work  of 
human  hands.  It  was  rather  a  bow  of  promise  which  the  sunlight 
of  truth,  shining  through  tears,  cast  upon  the  clouds.  It  assured 
the  world  that  the  waters  of  despotism  had  reached  their  flood 
and  were  receding.  God  grant  that  they  may  never  rise  again ! 


THE  SOUTH  CAROLINA  SITUATION. 

In  view  of  the  aciion  of  Senator  McLaurin  in  withdrawing 
his"  resignation,  the  reader  may  be  interested  in  reviewing  the 
dialogue  which  brought  about  the  resignation. 

At  a  meeting  at  Gaffney  Senators  Tillman  and  McLaurin  met 
in  joint  debate  and  the  former  in  the  course  of  his  speech  said : 

Let  McLaurin  resign  and  go  before  the  democratic  primary 
this  year,  and  I'll  go  home  and  keep  my  mouth  shut  and  let  the 
other  fellows  attend  to  him.  If  you  elect  him  I  will  take  it  as 
notice  that  you  don't  want  me.  If  he  is  a  democrat,  then  I'm 
not. 

Senator  McLaurin  replied: 

Oh,  yes.  Tillman  says,  "Why  don't  I  resign."  If  I'm  elected 
it  will  mean  the  people  don't  want  him.  But  he  stopped  there. 
He's  smart.  You'll  never  catch  him  committing  himself  too  far. 


172 

He  did  not  say  if  I'm  elected  he'd  resign.    Oh,  no.    You'll  never 
hear  of  Benjamin,  the  Tillmanite,  resigning. 

And  the  dialogue  continued  as  follows: 

Tillman:   I  will  say  it,  and  do  say  it! 
McLaurin :    Agreed. 

Tillman:   I  will  resign  right  now,  if  you  will,  and  we  will  go 
before  the  people. 
McLaurin :    Agreed. 

Tillman:   Draw  up  the  paper  and  we  will  sign  it  right  now. 
McLaurin:   That  suits  me. 

In  pursuance  of  this  agreement  the  resignations  were  pre- 
pared, signed  and  delivered  to  the  governor,  who,  after  a  few  days' 
consideration,  addressed  communications  to  the  senators  advising 
them  to  recall  their  resignations  and  giving  as  the  main  reason 
therefor  that  a  campaign  this  year  would  involve  the  people  in  an 
unnecessary  and  harmful  political  agitation.  Senator  Tillman 
promptly  replied  that  great  issues  were  at  stake,  that  the  next 
session  of  the  senate  would  deal  with  questions  of  the  highest  im- 
portance and  that  South  Carolina  was  entitled  to  a  voice  in  the  set- 
tlement of  these  questions.  He  renewed  his  assertion  that  Senator 
McLaurin  was  misrepresenting  the  wishes  and  interests  of  the 
people  of  the  state  and  ought  to  be  replaced  by  some  one  who 
would  reflect  the  sentiment  of  the  people.  He  insisted  that  he  was 
willing  to  risk  his  own  term  in  order  to  enable  the  people  to  get 
rid  of  Senator  McLaurin. 

Senator  McLaurin,  however,  seized  with  alacrity  upon  the  sug- 
gestion made  by  Governor  McSweeney  and  withdrew  his  resigna- 
tion. One  paragraph  of  his  letter  to  the  governor  is  worth  repro- 
ducing. He  says: 

I  appreciate  fully  the  force  of  the  reasons  given  by  you  and 
the  effect  upon  the  people  of  the  state  of  a  heated  and  strife-produc- 
ing contest  for  United  States  senator  this  year.  For  the  sake  of 
the  peace,  prosperity  and  happiness  of  the  people  of  this  state,  I 
am  willing  to  hold  on  to  my  commission  as  United  States  senator 
and  to  continue  to  serve  the  state  as  I  have  done  in  the  past  to  the 
best  of  my  ability. 

His  willingness  vto  hold  on  to"  his  commission  "for  the  sake 
of  the  peace,  prosperity  and  happiness  of  the  people"  of  his  state 
recalls  a  story  told  by  John  Allen,  of  Mississippi.  A  county  treas- 
urer, let  us  call  him  Mr.  Smith,  became  a  candidate  for  a  third 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  173 

term ;  his  competitor,  whom  we  will  call  Mr.  Jones,  made  his  fight 
against  the  incumbent  on  the  ground  that  a  third  term  ought  not 
to  be  given  to  an  official  entrusted  with  the  handling  of  the  county 
money.  He  insisted  that  there  ought  to  be  a  change  so  that  the 
books  could  be  examined.  His  arguments  were  effective  and  he 
beat  Mr.  Smith.  At  the  end  of  the  second  term  he  began  to  long 
for  a  third  term  himself,  but  for  awhile,  remembering  the  issue 
upon  which  he  won  the  office,  he  refrained  from  announcing  his 
candidacy.  Finally  his  desire  to  retain  the  office  overcame  his 
desire  to  be  consistent  and  he  entered  the  race  for  a  third  time. 
To  quiet  his  conscience,  however,  he  went  around  to  apologize  to 
Mr.  Smith  for  the  arguments  he  had  formerly  advanced  and  his 
apology  ran  like  this: 

"Mr.  Smith,  when  you  were  a  candidate  for  a  third  term  I 
made  the  race  against  you  on  the  theory  that  a  third  term  was 
wrong.  I  had  heard  the  arguments  made  against  a  third  term 
and  I  really  believed  that  they  were  sound,  but  I  have  been  in  the 
office  two  terms  myself  and  I  now  see  that  there  is  no-  reason 
why  a  good  county  treasurer  should  not  serve  as  many  terms 
as  he  likes.  I  admit  now  that  I  was  wrong  and  when  I  make 
a  mistake  I  am  just  man  enough  to  acknowledge  it." 

Senator  McLaurin  sees  now  that  he  made  a  mistake  in  risk- 
ing two  years  of  senatorial  salary  and  he  is  "just  man  enough 
to  acknowledge  it." 

The  letters  written  by  the  two  senators  are  entirely  char- 
acteristic of  the  men.  The  honorable  course  pursued  by  Senator 
Tillman  and  the  evasion  resorted  to  by  Senator  McLaurin  will 
increase  the  desire  already  very  general  among  democrats  to  see 
some  plan  adopted  which  will  give  Senator  Tillman  a  colleague 
in  harmony  with  his  constituents. 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 


IX. 

CONSTITUTIONAL  LIBERTY. 

The  worst  feature  of  the  supreme  court  decision  in  the 
Downes  case  is  that  it  strikes  a  blow  at  constitutional  liberty. 
In  attempting  to  defend  the  position  taken  by  the  majority  of  the 
court,  Justice  Brown  used  arguments  which,  if  carried  to  their 
logical  conclusion,  would  deny  the  necessity  for  a  constitution 
anywhere.  According  to  the  decision  of  the  court,  Congress 
can  govern  Porto  Eico  as  a  colony,  without  constitutional 
limitations,  so  far  as  the  taxing  power  is  concerned,  and  enough 
is  said  in  the  majority  opinion  to  show  that  no  political  right 
is  absolutely  secure. 

The  question  naturally  arises:  If  the  Porto  Ricans  do  not 
need  the  protection  of  a  written  constitution,  why  do  the  people 
of  the  United  States  need  a  written  constitution?  If  we  con- 
cede that  the  Porto  Ricans  are  safe  without  a  constitution  we 
must  also  admit  that  the  American  people  would  be  safe  without 
a  constitution.  Justice  Brown  says:  "Grave  apprehensions  of 
danger  are  felt  by  many  eminent  men — a  fear  lest  an  unre- 
strained possession  of  power  on  the  part  of  Congress  may  lead  to 
unjust  and  oppressive  legislation,  in  which  the  natural  rights 
of  territories,  or  their  inhabitants,  may  be  engulfed  in  a  cen- 
tralized despotism.  These  fears,  however,  find  no  justification 
in  the  action  of  Congress,  nor  in  the  conduct  of  the  British 
parliament  toward  its  outlying  possessions  since  the  American 
revolution.  *  *  *  There  are  certain  principles  of  natural 
justice  inherent  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  character  which  need  no 
expressions  in  constitutions  or  statutes  to  give  them  effect  or  to 
secure  dependencies  against  legislation  manifestly  hostile  to  their 
real  interests." 

I  shall  at  another  time  treat  of  his  reference  to  the  benevo- 
lence of  the  British  Parliament,  but  my  purpose  at  this  time 
is  to  emphazise  the  fact  that  he  repudiates  the  arguments  which 
have  always  been  given  in  support  of  a  written  constitution.  It 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  175 

was  necessary  to  do  so  in  order  to  justify  the  Porto  Rican  de- 
cision, and  yet  in  doing  so  he  surrenders  one  of  the  most  vital 
principles  of  government.  Some  of  the  republican  papers  have 
violently  assailed  me  because  I  pointed  out  the  political  heresy 
uttered  by  the  court.  Will  any  republican  paper  quote  the  language 
which  I  have  quoted  above,  and  then  answer  two  questions  ? 

FIRST.— IS  A  CONSTITUTION  A  GOOD  THING  FOR 
THE  PEOPLE  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES? 

SECOND.— IF  SO,  DO  NOT  THE  PORTO  RICANS  ALSO 
NEED  A  CONSTITUTION? 

A  special  invitation  is  extended  to  the  editor  of  Postmaster 
General  Smith's  paper  to  answer  these  questions,  but  any  republi- 
can paper,  great  or  small,  conspicuous  or  obscure,  is  at  liberty  to 
try.  The  Porto  Ricans  do  not  elect  the  Congress;  we  do,  and  yet 
we  have  the  protection  of  a  constitution  while  the  Porto  Ricans 
have  none.  We  can  retire  the  members  of  Congress  if  we  don't 
like  their  conduct;  the  Porto  Ricans  cannot,  and  yet  we  have  a 
constitution  and  the  Porto  Ricans  have  none.  The  members  of 
Congress  are  chosen  from  among  us,  and  they  must  live  under  the 
laws  which  they  make  for  us ;  the  congressmen  are  not  chosen  from 
among  the  Porto  Ricans,  and  do  not  live  under  the  laws  made  for 
the  Porto  Ricans,  and  yet  we  have  a  constitution  and  the  Porto 
Ricans  have  none.  If  "there  are  certain  principles  of  natural  jus- 
tice inherent  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  character  which  need  no  expres- 
sion in  constitutions  or  statutes  to  give  them  effect  or  to  secure  de- 
pendencies against  legislation  manifestly  hostile  to  their  real  in- 
terests," why  were  the  people  of  revolutionary  days  unwilling  to 
rely  upon  that  "natural  justice"?  If  there  is  no  danger  in  "an 
unrestrained  possession  of  power  on  the  part  of  congress"  why 
were  our  forefathers  so  careful  to  restrain  that  power  ?  Has  human 
nature  so  changed  as  to  make  unnecessary  now  the  constitutional 
limitations  which  were  thought  necessary  a  century  ago? 

Constitutional  liberty  has  been  attacked  and  the  attack  must 
be  met  at  once.  The  doctrine  laid  down  by  Justice  Brown  is 
antagonistic  to  all  that  the  American  people  have  been  taught  to 
believe  sacred.  If  we  admit  his  argument  when  applied  to  Porto 
Ricans,  upon  what  ground  can  we  stand  when  we  claim  for  our- 
selves the  protection  of  the  Constitution  or  the  bill  of  rights?  If 
the  principle  contended  for  by  Justice  Brown  is  established  for 
the  government  of  colonies,  it  will  by  irresistible  logic  become 


176  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

operative  in  the  United  States.  That  the  readers  of  THE  COM- 
MONER may  fortify  their  own  views  by  the  wisdom  of  Thomas 
Jefferson,  the  following  extracts  are  made  from  his  writings  as 
collected  in  that  invaluable  volume  "The  Jeffersonian  Cyclopedia." 

In  1803  Mr.  Jefferson  said:  "Our  peculiar  security  is  in  the 
possession  of  a  written  constitution.  Let  us  not  make  it  a  blank 
paper  by  construction." 

In  1802  he  wrote:  "Though  written  constitutions  may  be 
violated  in  moments  of  passion  or  delusion,  yet  they  furnish  a 
text  to  which  those  who  are  watchful  may  again  rally  and  recall 
the  people.  They  fix,  too,  for  the  people  the  principles  of  their 
political  creed." 

At  another  time  he  described  our  Constitution  as  "the  ark 
of  our  safety,  and  grand  palladium  of  our  peace  and  happiness." 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  federal  constitution  was  op- 
posed by  some  because  it  did  not  contain  a  bill  of  rights,  and  the 
first  ten  amendments  were  immediately  adopted  to  remedy  this 
defect  and  provide  additional  guarantees  to  life,  liberty  and  prop- 
erty. Jefferson  was  a  firm  believer  in  the  doctrine  which  led  to 
the  adoption  of  the  bill  of  rights.  In  a  letter  written  in  1789  he 
said:  "I  disapproved  from  the  first  moment  the  want  of  a  bill  of 
rights  (in  the  constitution)  to  guard  liberty  against  the  legisla- 
tive as  well  as  the  executive  branches  of  the  government;  that  is 
to  say,  to  secure  freedom  in  religion,  freedom  of  the  press,  free- 
dom from  monopolies,  freedom  from  unlawful  imprisonment, 
freedom  from  a  permanent  military  and  a  trial  by  jury  in  all 
cases  determinable  by  the  laws  of  the  land." 

In  a  letter  to  James  Madison,  written  in  1787,  Jefferson  said: 
"A  bill  of  rights  is  what  the  people  are  entitled  to  against  every 
government  on  earth,  general  or  particular;  and  what  no  just 
government  should  refuse,  or  rest  on  inferences/' 

At  another  time  he  defined  his  position  as  follows:  "By  a 
declaration  of  rights  I  mean  one  which  shall  stipulate  freedom  of 
religion,  freedom  of  the  press,  freedom  of  commerce  against 
monopolies,  trial  by  juries  in  all  cases,  no  suspension  of  the 
habeas  corpus,  no  standing  armies.  These  are  fetters  against 
doing  evil  which  no  honest  government  should  decline." 

Jefferson  was  a  believer  in  popular  government,  but  he  also 
believed  in  the  inalienable  rights  of  individuals — rights  which  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  177 

government  does  not  give  and  ought  not  to  take  away — rights 
which  cannot  be  safely  intrusted  to  the  keeping  of  any  legislative 
body.  Until  recently  Jefferson's  position  on  this  subject  was 
unanimously  endorsed. 

Every  state  has  adopted  a  constitution  placing  restrictions 
upon  the  legislative  branch  as  well  as  upon  the  other  branches  of 
the  government.  The  state  of  Ohio  has  a  constitution  and  a  bill 
of  rights ;  how  can  Senator  Hanna  and  President  McKinley  favor 
a  constitution  and  a  bill  of  rights  for  Ohio  and  then  declare  that 
the  people  of  Porto  Eico  need  no  such  protection  ?  If  the  farmers, 
laborers  and  business  men  of  Ohio  are  not  willing  to  trust  the 
wisdom  and  justice  of  an  unrestrained  state  legislature,  by  what 
process  of  reasoning  do  they  reach  the  conclusion  that  the  people 
of  Porto  Eico  can  entrust  their  rights  to  the  protection  of  an  unre- 
strained congress? 

Justice  Brown  is  a  citizen  of  the  state  of  Michigan,  and 
Michigan  also  has  a  constitution  and  a  bill  of  rights.  Is  Justice 
Brown  willing  to  go  before  the  people  of  his  own  state  and  tell 
them  that  their  legislature  should  be  vested  with  full  and  unre- 
strained power  to  act  on  all  questions  affecting  the  rights  and  prop- 
erty of  the  citizens  ?  If  not,  why  not  ?  Is  a  congress  more  reliable 
than  a  state  legislature?  Is  a  representative  body  more  trust- 
worthy as  it  gets  farther  away  from  the  people?  Is  delegated 
authority  more  carefully  exercised  in  proportion  as  the  seat  of 
government  is  farther  removed  from  the  voters? 

The  position  taken  by  Judge  Brown  would  be  ludicrous  if  it 
were  not  so  serious.  It  is  strange  that  his  language  is  not  chal- 
lenged by  republicans.  Two  republican  judges  out  of  six  dissented 
from  this  position;  have  the  republican  newspapers  less  independ- 
ence than  the  judges?  Have  the  rank  and  file  of  the  republican 
party,  who  are  under  no  obligation  to  the  party,  less  independence 
of  thought  and  action  than  the  justices  who  hold  their  commissions 
from  republican  presidents?  Unless  the  people  are  wholly  ab- 
sorbed in  money-making  and  entirely  indifferent  to  that  constitu- 
tional liberty  so  highly  prized  and  so  dearly  bought  by  our 
ancestors  there  will  be  so  emphatic  a  protest  against  the  imperialis- 
tic utterances  of  a  court  that  no  body  of  officials  on  the  bench  or 
elsewhere  will  soon  again  disregard  the  spirit  of  American  insti- 
tutions. 


i*r8  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

HEBRON  ATTACKS  MARRIAGE  SYSTEM. 

Prof.  Herron  has  committed  an  unpardonable  sin — he  has  at- 
tacked the  marriage  system.  So  long  as  he  confined  his  efforts 
to  the  amelioration  of  social  conditions  his  motives  were  respected 
whatever  criticism  may  have  been  directed  against  his  methods  or 
his  theories.  But  when  he  rebels  against  a  marriage  system 
which  requires  a  husband  to  care  for  his  wife  and  perform  a 
father's  duty,  he  forfeits  public  esteem.  In  his  letter  to  the 
Congregational  church,  replying  to  an  invitation  which  had  been 
extended  to  him  to  join  in  calling  a  council  to  inquire  into  his 
ministerial  standing  and  church  membership,  he  took  occasion  to 
condemn  the  entire  system  of  marriage  as  immoral  and  blas- 
phemous. The  following  extract  is  sufficient  to  set  forth  his 
views  on  the  subject: 

I  do  not  believe  that  the  present  marriage  system  is  sacred  or 
good.  It  rather  seems  to  me  the  destruction  of  the  liberty  and 
love  and  truth  which  make  sacred  and  worth  while.  If  love  and 
truth  are  the  basis  of  morality,  then  a  marriage  system  which 
makes  one  human  being  the  property  of  another,  without  regard 
to  the  well-being  of  either  the  owned  or  the  owner,  seems  to  me 
to  be  the  very  soul  of  blasphemy  and  immorality. 

The  family  founded  on  force  is  a  survival  of  slavery  and  one 
of  the  expressions  of  the  slave  principles  on  which  our  whole  slave 
civilization  is  built.  It  is  made  of  the  superstition  which  thinks 
it  good  for  human  beings  to  own  each  other  and  good  for  the 
race  to  have  all  the  sources  and  tools  of  life  owned  by  the  few 
who  are  strong  and  cunning  and  unscrupulous  to  possess  them. 

Mr.  Herron  made  no  defense  to  the  suit  for  divorce  instituted 
by  his  wife,  and  in  his  letter  he  announced  his  purpose  to  marry 
a  Miss  Rand  (whom  he  has  since  married).  He  is  not  the  first 
man  to  become  alienated  from  his  wife  by  falling  in  love  with 
another  woman,  but  he  differs  from  others  in  attempting  to  ex- 
onerate himself  by  assailing  the  most  sacred  human  institution. 
He  endeavors  to  spiritualize  and  idealize  a  new  attachment  which 
is  neither  spiritual  nor  ideal.  It  is  only  charitable  to  suppose  that 
he  loved  his  first  wife  when  he  promised  to  love  and  care  for 
her;  it  is  only  charitable  to  assume  that  this  love  was  present 
when  his  home  was  blessed  with  the  children  whom  he  now 
abandons.  But  he  allowed  his  heart  to  stray  away  from  his  own 
home  to  the  home  of  another;  he  allowed  an  acquaintance  to 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  179 

usurp  his  wife's  place  in  his  affections.  He  calls  the  new  at- 
tachment "comradeship/7  but  that  does  not  sanctify  or  excuse 
his  conduct.  So  far  as  the  evidence  shows  his  wife  was  a  comrade 
before  his  affections  were  withdrawn  and  did  what  she  could  to 
continue  the  comradeship.  He  deliberately  chose  to  repudiate  his 
marriage  vows,  and  now,  rather  than  admit  that  he  has  fallen 
from  the  path  of  honor  and  uprightness,  he  cries  out  against 
domestic  virtue  and  conjugal  happiness. 

Marriage  is  not  slavery ;  neither  the  husband  nor  the  wife  owns 
the  other.  They  are  joint  occupants  of  earth's  holiest  tenement. 
One  may  so  act  as  to  forfeit  the  confidence  of  the  other  and  it  may 
be  even  wise,  under  some  circumstances,  for  them  to  separate,  but 
such  exceptions  do  not  justify  a  wholesale  condemnation  of  the 
marriage  system.  The  Christian  home  is  not  a  prison;  there  is 
room  enough  and  freedom  enough  in  it  for  the  development  of 
all  that  is  pure  and  noble.  Its  character  would  not  be  improved 
by  a  free  and  frequent  change  of  partners.  Children  should  be 
protected  from  the  results  of  a  "freedom"  which  would  lead  to 
the  disruption  of  the  family  every  time  a  person  appeared  who 
seemed  to  husband  or  wife  more  congenial  than  the  other. 

According  to  Prof.  Herron's  theory,  the  highest  virtue  is  to 
live  the  truth — to  be  one's  self.  He  says : 

Civilization,  with  its  network  of  falsehood  and  suspicion,  of 
retribution  and  revenge,  is  a  sort  of  world  conspiracy  against  the 
soul's  integrity  and  individuality.  Yet  the  right  of  a  single  oul 
to  fully  and  freely  express  itself,  to  live  out  and  show  forth  all 
the  truth  about  itself,  so  that  it  need  have  within  itself  no  hidden 
things,  but  be  naked  before  the  universe  and  not  be  ashamed,  is 
infinitely  more  important  than  the  whole  fabric  of  civilization. 

There  are  times  when  to  be  without  a  sense  of  shame  indi- 
cates an  absence  of  conscience. 

It  is  not  sufficient  that  one  should  reveal  his  inmost  self  to 
the  world ;  if  that  were  all  the  vilest  sinner  could  become  a  saint 
by  confessing  his  wickedness.  Something  more  is  necessary;  there 
should  be  repentance  and  works  meet  for  repentance.  It  is  more 
important  that  one  improve  himself  than  that  he  exhibit  himself; 
it  is  more  virtuous  to  resist  temptation  than  to  boldly  admit 
having  yielded  to  it.  The  marriage  system  will  survive  this  attack, 
as  it  has  survived  others,  but  Mr.  Herron  will  not  add  to  his 
usefulness  by  the  position  which  he  has  taken. 


i8o  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

THE  DOCTRINE  OF  THRONES. 

The  opponents  of  imperialism  assert  that  "it  is  the  doctrine  of 
thrones  that  man  is  too  ignorant  to  govern  himself."  To-day  the 
republican  party  is  thoroughly  committed  to  this  doctrine  of 
thrones. 

In  a  speech  delivered  in  the  House  of  Representatives  in  1818, 
Henry  Clay  pleaded  for  South  American  independence  from  Span- 
ish rule.  "It  is  the  doctrine  of  thrones,"  said  Mr.  Clay,  "that 
man  is  too  ignorant  to  govern  himself.  Their  partisans  assert  his 
incapacity  in  reference  to  all  nations;  if  they  cannot  command 
universal  assent  to  the  propositon  it  is  then  demanded  as  to  par- 
ticular nations;  and  our  pride  and  our  presumption  too  often 
make  converts  of  us.  I  contend  that  it  is  to  arraign  the  disposi- 
tion of  Providence  himself  to  suppose  that  he  created  beings 
incapable  of  governing  themselves  and  to  be  trampled  on  by 
kings.  Self-government  is  the  natural  government  of  man,  and 
for  proof  I  refer  to  the  aborigines  of  our  own  land.  Were  I  to 
speculate  in  hypothesis  unfavorable  to  human  liberty,  my  specu- 
lations should  be  founded  rather  iipon  the  vice,  refinement  or 
density  of  population.  Crowded  together  in  compact  masses,  even 
if  they  were  philosophers,  the  contagion  of  the  passions  is  com- 
municated and  caught,  and  the  effect  too  often,  I  admit,  is  the 
overthrow  of  liberty.  Dispersed  over  such  an  immense  space  as 
that  on  which  the  people  of  Spanish  America  are  spread,  their 
physical,  and  I  believe  their  moral  condition,  both  favor  their 
liberty,", 


"THE  BEST  FORM  OF  GIVING." 

In  addressing  a  Sunday  school  class  recently,  Mr.  Rockefeller 
of  the  Standard  Oil  Trust,  said  that  his  organization  paid  twenty- 
two  millions  a  year  in  wages,  and  that  in  thirty  years  it  had  paid 
out  between  six  hundred  and  seven  hundred  millions  to  laboring 
men.  "This,"  he  added,  "I  regard  as  the  best  form  of  giving." 

There  is  no  doubt  that  remunerative  employment  is  more 
helpful  than  charity,  but  Mr.  Rockefeller  can  hardly  credit  his 
charity  account  with  the  amount  paid  out  in  wages.  During  the 
past  seven  years  the  dividends  declared  by  the  Standard  Oil  Trust 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  181 

have  amounted  to  $252,000,000.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
dividends  for  seven  years  amount  to  more  than  one-third  of  the 
wages  paid  during  a  period  of  thirty  years.  Mr.  Eockefeller's 
share  of  the  dividends  for  the  past  five  months  are  said  to  amount 
to  ten  millions — this  is  at  the  rate  of  twenty-four  millions  a  year. 
If  Mr.  Rockefeller  can  make  twenty-four  millions  (not  to  speak 
of  the  dividends  paid  to  other  stockholders)  by  paying  twenty-two 
millions  in  wages  he  has  found  a  very  profitable  investment,  even 
though  it  cannot  properly  be  described  as  the  "best  form  of  giving." 
As  Mr.  Rockefeller  gets  more  out  of  it  than  the  thousands  of  men 
who  do  the  work,  and  as  he  could  get  nothing  out  of  the  business 
but  for  the  work  done  by  the  wage  earners,  it  is  evident  that  the 
day  laborers  are  doing  some  "giving"  themselves.  Mr.  Rockefeller 
has  the  reputation  of  being  a  very  liberal  man,  but  it  is  quite  evi- 
dent that  he  is  giving  away  some  one  else's  money.  If  the  em- 
ployes are  not  receiving  wages  enough  he  is  giving  away  their 
money  or  money  which  should  be  paid  to  them,  and  they  should 
be  credited  with  his  donations.  If  the  employes  are  receiving 
wages  enough,  it  must  be  apparent  that  the  consumers  of  oil  are 
paying  too  much,  and  therefore  they  should  be  credited  with  Mr. 
Rockefeller's  donations.  Some  one  has  described  the  Chicago  Uni- 
versity as  a  national  university,  because  it  is  supported  by  money 
collected  from  all  the  people,  by  that  most  successful  taxgatherer, 
the  Standard  Oil  Trust. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  payment  of  wages  is  not  "a  form  of 
giving."  You  do  not  speak  of  giving  a  man  a  horse  when  you  re- 
ceive for  the  horse  as  much  as  it  is  worth.  There  is  much  less 
reason  for  describing  wages  as  a  gift  because  the  wage-earner  not 
only  earns  all  he  receives,  but  he  earns  for  his  employer  a  profit 
besides.  But  even  if  the  ordinary  wage-earner  could  count  his 
wages  as  a  gift,  it  would  be  a  perversion  of  language  to  say  that 
Mr.  Rockefeller  was  giving  to  his  employes  when  the  employes 
give  back  to  Mr.  Rockefeller  all  that  he  pays  for  wages  and  more 
than  one  hundred  per  cent,  profit  on  the  wages  besides. 

When  Mr.  Rockefeller  is  ready  to  render  an  account  of  his 
stewardship,  he  will  not  find  the  amount  paid  by  him  in  wages 
standing  to  his  credit,  but  he  will  find  some  charges  made  against 
the  amount  which  he  has  received.  A  part  of  his  enormous  income 
represents  money  which  his  employes  ought  to  have  received,  and 
a  part  represents  money  taken  from  the  public  in  violation  of 


182  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

human  as  well  as  divine  laws.  Not  only  will  lie  find  it  impossible 
to  obtain  credit  for  wages  paid  to  employes,  but  he  will  find  that 
much  that  he  has  given  to  religion,  to  education  and  to  charity  has 
been  set  down  in  the  "incidental  expense"  column  and  not  under 
the  head  of  benevolence.  The  money  which  he  has  paid  to  sub- 
sidize the  press — not  money  paid  to  proprietors  of  papers,  but 
money  expended  in  such  a  way  as  to  silence  criticism  and  to  provoke 
eulogy,  money  paid  to  prevent  ministerial  denunciation  of  trust 
methods — not  money  paid  to  the  ministers  themselves,  but  money 
given  to  religious  enterprises,  and  money  used  to  corrupt  colleges 
and  to  support  professors  who  will  defend,  or  at  least  deal  gently 
with,  monopolies — all  these  expenditures  are  not  given  to  charity 
but  are  a  part  of  the  business.  Mr.  Rockefeller  has  given  so  small 
a  part  of  his  income  that  he  has  become  fabulously  rich  in  a  short 
time.  Measured  by  the  rule  laid  down  by  the  Master  in  the  case 
of  the  widow  who  gave  in  two  mites,  Mr.  Rockefeller  is  a  miser. 
Thousands  have  given  more  liberally  in  proportion  to  their  in- 
come, although  their  gifts  have  not  amounted  to  so  much  in  dollars. 
If  Mr.  Rockefeller  had  given,  not  a  small  per  cent.,  but  all  of  his 
income  to  church  and  charity,  he  could  not  have  compensated  for 
the  harm  he  has  done,  nor  could  he  have  justified  the  criminal 
methods  which  he  has  employed.  Mr.  Rockefeller  cannot  boast  of 
his  giving,  least  of  all  can  he  boast  of  giving  to  his  employes. 


WHO  WROTE  IT? 

"These  are  words  of  weighty  import.  They  involve  conse? 
quences  of  the  most  momentous  character.  I  take  leave  to  say 
that  if  the  principles  thus  announced  should  ever  receive  the  sanc- 
tion of  a  majority  of  this  court,  a  radical  and  mischievous  change 
in  our  system  of  government  will  be  the  result.  We  will,  in 
that  event,  pass  from  the  era  of  constitutional  liberty  guarded 
and  protected  by  a  written  constitution  into  an  era  of  legislative 
absolutism." 

Here  is  a  serious  charge  brought  against  the  majority  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  The  court  is  accused  of 
bringing  about  a  "change  in  our  system  of  government" — not  only 
a  change  but  "radical  and  mischievous"  change.  It  is  charged 
that  in  the  event  of  that  decision — and  the  decision  was  made — • 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  183 

"constitutional  liberty"  would  be  lost  and  "an  era  of  legislative 
absolutism"  ushered  in. 

What  graver  indictment  could  be  brought  against  our  highest 
judicial  tribunal?  Who  wrote  it?  Who  is  guilty  of  thus  reflect- 
ing upon  the  patriotism  and  purpose  of  the  Court?  Let  the  re- 
publican papers  ferret  out  the  culprit  «and  visit  condign  punish- 
ment upon  him.  Let  him  feel  the  righteous  wrath  of  those  pure 
and  immaculate  souls  who  always  bow  to  a  court  decision  (when 
it  is  on  their  side),  and  never  utter  a  reflection  against  a  judge 
(unless  he  decides  against  them). 

Who  wrote  the  words  above  quoted?  Did  they  emanate  from  a 
demagogue;  was  this  the  wail  of  a  defeated  candidate;  was  it 
the  speech  of  some  disturber  of  the  peace — some  stirrer  up  of  dis- 
content ? 

No,  the  words  will  be  found  in  a  dissenting  opinion  of  a  justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  of  America.  A  demo- 
cratic justice?  No.  A  populist  justice?  No.  A  silver  repub- 
lican justice?  No. 

What  then?  They  are  the  words  of  a  republican  justice  of  the 
supreme  court — Justice  Harlan — appointed  by  a  republican  presi- 
dent. 

Hereafter,  when  republican  papers  desire  to  condemn  those 
who  criticise  a  supreme  court  decision,  let  them  begin  at  the  top 
and  assail  Justice  Harlan  first.  After  they  have  administered 
to  him  the  rebuke  which  he,  from  their  standpoint,  deserves, 
they  will  be  too  much  exhausted  to  attack  those  who  quote 
Justice  Harlan  against  the  court. 


"LARGE  CONCESSIONS." 

Justice  Brown,  in  delivering  the  majority  opinion  in  the  Downes 
case,  clearly  shows  that  he  was  willing  to  make  "large  conces- 
sions" in  order  to  sustain  the  administration.  He  concludes  his 
argument,  or  rather  his  explanation,  by  presenting  the  expediency 
excuse  in  all  its  baldness.  He  says: 

A  false  step  at  this  time  misrht  be  fatal  to  the  development 
of  what  Chief  Justice  Marshall  called  the  American  empire. 
Choice  in  some  cases,  the  natural  gravitation  of  small  bodies 
toward  large  ones  in  others,  the  result  of  a  successful  war  in  still 


184  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

others,  may  bring  about  conditions  which  would  render  the  an- 
nexation of  distant  possessions  desirable.  If  those  possessions 
are  inhabited  by  alien  races,  differing  from  us  in  religion,  customs, 
laws,  methods  of  taxation  and  modes  of  thought,  the  administra- 
tion of  government  and  justice,  according  to  Anglo-Saxon  prin- 
ciples, may  for  a  time  be  impossible;  and  the  question  at  once 
arises  whether  large  concessions  ought  not  to  be  made  for  a 
time,  that,  ultimately  our  own  theories  may  be  carried  out  and 
the  blessings  of  a  free  government  under  the  Constitution  ex- 
tended to  them.  We  decline  to  hold  that  there  is  anything  in 
the  Constitution  to  forbid  such  action. 

The  inference  is  clear  that  he  would  have  joined  the  minority 
but  for  the  fear  that  "a  false  step,"  as  he  called  it,  "might  be 
fatal  to  the  development''  of  the  administration's  plan.  He 
assumes  that  conditions  might  make  "the  annexation  of  distant 
possessions  desirable,"  and  recognizing  that  such  lands  might  be 
"inhabited  by  alien  races,  differing  from  us  in  religion,  customs, 
laws,  methods  of  taxation  and  modes  of  thought,"  he  surrenders 
the  principles  of  constitutional  government  in  order  to  vest  in 
Congress  power  to  administer  a  different  kind  01  government  from 
that  contemplated  by  our  forefathers.  Of  course,  he  does  not 
expect  to  suspend  the  Constitution  forever,  but  in  order  to  justify 
a  temporary  suspension  of  the  Constitution  he  employs  arguments 
which  destroy  the  foundations  of  constitutional  liberty.  It  is 
the  old  story — as  old  as  history.  It  is  yielding  to  temptation; 
it  is  the  conscious  departure  from  the  right  path  with  lame  and 
halting  apologies  therefor.  It  is  the  ancient  argument  that  the 
end  justifies  the  means — an  argument  that  has  been  used  to  bolster 
up  every  thing  bad  and  to  excuse  all  villainy.  When  a  person 
starts  to  "making  concessions"  whether  from  moral  principles  or 
from  constitutional  provisions,  he  always  increases  the  conces- 
sions until  they  become  as  large  as  the  case  requires.  Justice 
Brown  makes  the  mistake  of  weighing  desire  against  duty.  Noth- 
ing can  be  desirable  which  requires  a  surrender  of  our  ideas  of 
government.  That  ought  to  be  a  starting  point.  If  the  truths  set 
forth  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence  are  self-evident  truths; 
if  the  rights  enumerated  are  inalienable  rights;  if  the  people  are 
the  only  source  from  which  a  just  government  can  derive  its 
powers — if  these  things  are  true,  then  nothing  can  be  desirable 
which  requires  a  repudiation  of  them.  The  very  fact  that  Justice 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  185 

Brown  discusses  the  question,  or  entertains  the  thought  of  com- 
paring the  desirableness  of  distant  possessions  with  the  duty  of 
maintaining  the  principles  of  free  government  shows  that  his  heart 
has  wandered  from  the  paths  trod  by  the  revolutionary  patriots. 
He  may  delude  himself  with  the  idea  that  he  can  ultimately  extend 
the  blessings  of  "free  government"  by  denying  the  principles  of 
free  government  now.  But  it  is  a  vain  hope.  To  justify  a  tempo- 
rary surrender  we  must  relax  our  hold  upon  American  doctrines 
and  when  that  hold  is  once  relaxed  it  is  not  apt  to  be  regained. 
Power  is  fascinating.  It  flatters  our  vanity  to  be  told  that  we 
are  "a  superior  people"  and  owe  it  to  "inferior  people"  to  take 
care  of  them.  As  we  never  can  convince  them  that  we  are  dis- 
interested or  make  them  satisfied  with  our  sovereignty,  it  is  not 
safe  to  give  them  a  voice  in  their  own  government. 

If  our  subjects  protest  against  carpet-bag  officials,  it  is  proof 
positive  that  they  lack  the  intelligence  to  govern  themselves. 
When  a  superior  race  is  dealing  with  an  inferior  one,  lack  of  ap- 
preciation is  a  heinous  offense;  and  when  did  the  subject  ever 
appreciate  an  effort  to  deprive  him  of  his  liberty  ? 

Progress,  civilization,  capacity  for  self-government — all  these 
are  relative  terms.  Individuals  differ  from  each  other,  races  differ, 
nations  differ.  Let  us  suppose  that  ten  represents  the  capacity 
of  the  Filipinos  for  self-government  while  one  hundred  represents 
the  capacity  of  the  American  people;  how  can  they  come  nearer 
together  unless  the  Filipinos  make  more  rapid  progress  than  the 
American?  Is  it  probable  or  even  possible  that  the  Filipinos,  de- 
nied the  experience  which  self-government  gives,  would  improve 
as  fast  as  we  so  long  as  we  are  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  self-govern- 
ment? 

Justice  Brown  referred  with  evident  pride  to  England's  methods 
of  dealing  with  her  colonies,  and  yet  England  is  making  no  progress 
toward  self-government.  The  Indian  people  are  complaining 
that  Englishmen  are  sent  out  to  fill  the  important  offices  at  high 
salaries;  the  native  papers  of  influence  do  not  attempt  to  defend 
the  policy  of  the  English  government  and  the  educated  classes 
are  especially  hostile  to  British  rule. 

Japan  has  made  more  progress  in  the  last  forty  years  than 
India  has  made  in  a  hundred  and  fifty.  Mexico,  half  Spanish  and 
half  Indian,  has  made  greater  strides  in  the  last  quarter  of  a 


1 86  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

century  than  India  has  made  in  a  century  and  a  half.  When  the 
Mexican  war  was  ended  our  flag  was  hauled  down  from  the  heights 
of  Chapultepec,  and  both  the  United  States  and  Mexico  have 
prospered  more  as  sister  republics  than  either  would  have  pros- 
pered had  we  adopted  an  imperialistic  policy. 

The  "destiny"  argument  obliterates  all  distinction  between  right 
and  wrong ;  it  assumes  that  there  is  somewhere  an  irresistible  force 
which  impels  the  American  people  to  do  what  they  do  not  want  to 
do  and  ought  not  to  do,  whereas  the  only  force  behind  imperial- 
ism is  the  commercial  argument  that  the  Constitution  and  all 
moral  principles  must  give  way  to  the  almighty  dollar.  The  "des- 
tiny" argument  justifies  grand  larceny  and  wholesale  slaughter, 
provided  that  they  will  pay,  and  then  imperialists,  conscious  that 
the  means  employed  cannot  be  defended  by  argument,  throw  the 
blame  upon  Providence.  There  is  no  more  reason  to  believe  that 
God  commands  a  big  nation  to  destroy,  subjugate  or  rob 
a  weaker  nation  than  there  is  to  believe  that  God  commands 
a  strong  man  to  kill  or  rob  a  cripple,  and  yet  the  imperialists 
invoke  the  law  to  punish  the  individual  as  a  criminal  while  they 
extol  a  war  of  conquest  as  patriotic. 

If  concessions  are  made  they  ought  to  be  made  for  the  sup- 
port and  maintenance  of  republican  government,  not  for  its  over- 
throw, but  Justice  Brown  made  all  the  concession  away  from 
liberty  rather  than  toward  it.  His  policy  would  send  this  nation 
out  upon  the  highways  of  the  world  as  a  bully  and  a  braggart. 
Unless  he  knows  that  moral  principles  will  be  suspended  for  the 
protection  of  our  nation,  he  must  know  that  this  nation  cannot 
exercise  the  powers  conferred  by  the  supreme  court  without  de- 
stroying its  moral  prestige  among  the  nations  and  inviting  a 
terrible  retribution.  The  victims  of  arbitrary  power  may  survive, 
but  those  who  exercise  arbitrary  power  become  hardened  and  cal- 
loused until  they  lose  respect  for  liberty  and  then  lose  liberty  itself. 

The  concessions  made  by  the  court  are  so  large  that  no  material 
advantage  however  great  could  compensate  the  nation  for  them. 
What  shall  we  say,  then,  when  these  concessions  are  made  to 
secure  advantages  which  are  seeming  rather  than  real — advan- 
tages which  but  a  few  can  enjoy? 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  187 

UNSAFE  BANKING. 

The  failure  of  the  Seventh  National  Bank  of  New  York  city 
calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  many  banks  are  doing  business 
upon  an  unsafe  basis.  This  particular  bank  made  a  report  to  the 
clearing  house  on  June  21st  showing  that  its  capital  was  only 
$376,340  while  its  deposits  were  over  $5,700,000;  its  loans  over 
$4,400,000.  A  shrinkage  of  ten  per  cent,  in  the  value  of  its  loans 
would  have  more  than  wiped  out  its  capital.  According  to  the 
report  referred  to  the  net  profits  were  $234,000  but  even  this  sum 
added  to  the  capital  would  not  give  a  sufficient  margin  to  make 
the  business  safe. 

Some  ratio  should  be  fixed  between  the  bank's  capital  and  its 
deposits,  for  while  it  may  be  very  profitable  to  divide  among  a  few 
stockholders  the  profits  secured  upon  large  deposits  it  invites  col- 
lapse. A  banker  would  not  loan  to  a  merchant  whose  liabilities 
equalled  90  per  cent,  of  his  assets.  Why  should  he  ask  depositors 
to  trust  him  under  the  same  circumstances? 


ETEENAL  VIGILANCE. 

There  are  some  people  who  appear  indifferent  to  the  encroach- 
ments upon  liberty,  if  the  encroachments  appear  at  the  time  to  be 
small.  There  are  some  who  fail  to  see  in  the  Porto  Rican  tariff 
duty,  in  the  government  of  Porto  Rico  by  executive  power,  and 
in  the  denial  to  the  Filipinos  of  the  right  of  self-government,  any 
evil  serious  enough  to  warrant  consideration. 

Daniel  Webster,  in  a  speech  delivered  in  the  senate  May  7,  1834, 
had  something  to  say  on  this  subject.  This  is  what  Webster  said : 
"Every  encroachment,  great  or  small,  is  important  enough  to 
awaken  the  attention  of  those  who  are  entrusted  with  the  preserva- 
tion of  a  constitutional  government.  We  are  not  to  wait  till  great 
public  mischiefs  come,  till  the  government  is  overthrown,  or  liberty 
itself  put  into  extreme  jeopardy.  We  should  not  be  worthy  sons 
of  our  fathers  were  we  so  to  regard  great  questions  affecting  the 
general  freedom.  Those  fathers  accomplished  the  revolution  on 
a  strict  question  of  principle.  The  Parliament  of  Great  Britain 
asserted  a  right  to  tax  the  colonies  in  all  cases  whatsoever;  and 
it  was  precisely  on  this  question  that  they  made  the  revolution 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 

turn.  The  amount  of  taxation  was  trifling,  but  the  claim  itself 
was  inconsistent  with  liberty;  and  that  was  in  their  eyes  enough. 
It  was  against  the  recital  of  an  act  of  Parliament,  rather  than 
against  any  suffering  under  its  enactments,  that  they  took  up  arms. 
They  went  to  war  against  a  preamble.  They  fought  seven  years 
against  a  declaration.  They  poured  out  their  treasures  and  their 
blood  like  water,  in  a  contest  against  an  assertion  which  those  less 
sagacious  and  not  so  well  schooled  in  the  principles  of  civil  liberty 
would  have  regarded  as  barren  phraseology,  or  mere  parade  of 
words.  They  saw  in  the  claim  of  the  British  Parliament  a  seminal 
principle  of  mischief,  the  germ  of  unjust  power;  they  detected  it, 
dragged  it  forth  from  underneath  its  plausible  disguise,  struck 
at  it;  nor  did  it  elude  either  their  steady  or  well  directed  blow 
till  they  had  extirpated  and  destroyed  it,  to  the  smallest  fibre. 
On  this  question  of  principle,  while  actual  suffering  was  yet  far 
off,  they  raised  their  flag  against  a  power,  to  which  for  purposes 
of  foreign  conquest  and  subjugation,  Eome,  in  the  height  of  her 
glory,  is  not  to  be  compared;  a  power  which  has  dotted  over  the 
surface  of  the  whole  globe  with  her  possessions  and  military  posts ; 
whose  morning  drum-beat,  following  the  sun  and  keeping  company 
with  the  hours,  circles  the  earth  with  one  continuous  unbroken 
strain  of  the  martial  airs  of  England." 


AGTJINALDO'S  OFFER. 

In  another  column  will  be  found  a  dispatch  which  recently  ap- 
peared in  the  New  York  World  and  the  St.  Louis  Post-Dispatch, 
describing  an  offer  made  by  some  Filipinos  claiming  to  represent 
Aguinaldo. 

When  Mr.  Bryan  was  in  New  York  he  received  a  letter  from  a 
gentleman  saying  that  two  Filipinos  were  in  the  city  and  desired 
to  call,  but  the  letter  was  not  read  in  time  to  be  answered  before 
the  Filipinos  arrived.  They  were  refused  admittance,  and  a  friend 
was  sent  with  a  verbal  answer  to  the  letter  explaining  that  Mr. 
Bryan  did  not  think  it  proper  to  confer  with  them,  and  stating 
that  the  democratic  party  was  not  opposing  imperialism  because 
of  friendliness  to  the  Filipinos  but  because  imperialism  was  danger- 
ous to  American  institution.  The  Filipinos  said  that  Aguinaldo 
was  willing  to  issue  a  proclamation  promising  to  lay  down  arms  in 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  189 

case  of  Mr.  Bryan's  election,  and  also  willing  to  contribute  to  the 
democratic  campaign  fund,  but  Mr.  Bryan  refused  to  consider  either 
proposition,  and  did  not  require  them  to  furnish  any  evidence  of 
their  right  to  represent  Aginaldo  or  speak  for  him.  As  the  matter 
has  been  discussed  in  other  papers,  the  story  and  this  explanation 
are  given  to  readers  of  THE  COMMONER. 


THE  SULU  TKEATY. 

At  the  request  of  a  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  the  Sulu  treaty  is 
given  below.  It  is  now  about  two  years  since  the  treaty  was  signed, 
but  our  flag  is  still  flying  over  the  Sultan's  palace  and  both  slavery 
and  polygamy  remain  undisturbed.  The  treaty  reads: 

ARTICLE  I.  The  sovereignty  of  the  United  States  over  the  whole 
archipelago  of  Sulu  and  its  dependencies  is  declared  and  acknowl- 
edged. 

ARTICLE  II.  The  United  States  flag  will  be  used  in  the  archi- 
pelago of  Sulu  and  its  dependencies  on  land  and  sea. 

ARTICLE  III.  The  rights  and  dignities  of  his  highness,  the 
sultan,  and  his  datos  shall  be  fully  respected,  and  Moros  shall  not 
be  interfered  with  on  account  of  their  religion ;  all  their  religious 
customs  shall  be  respected  and  no  one  shall  be  persecuted  on  ac- 
count of  his  religion. 

ARTICLE  IV.  While  the  United  States  may  occupy  and  control 
such  points  in  the  archipelago  of  Sulu  as  public  interest  seem  to 
demand,  encroachment  will  not  be  made  upon  the  lands  immedi- 
ately about  the  residence  of  his  highness,  the  sultan,  unless  mili- 
tary necessity  requires  such  occupation  in  case  of  war  with  a 
foreign  power,  and  where  the  property  of  individuals  is  taken,  due 
compensation  will  be  made  in  each  case. 

Any  person  can  purchase  land  in  the  archipelago  of  Sulu  and 
hold  the  same  by  obtaining  the  consent  of  the  sultan  and  coming 
to  a  satisfactory  agreement  with  the  owner  of  the  land,  and  such 
purchase  shall  be  immediately  registered  in  the  proper  office  of 
the  United  States  government. 

ARTICLE  V.  All  trade  in  the  domestic  products  of  the  archi- 
pelago of  Sulu,  when  carried  on  by  the  sultan  and  his  people  with 
any  part  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  when  conducted  under 
the  American  flag,  shall  be  free,  unlimited  and  undutiable. 

ARTICLE  VI.  The  sultan  of  Sulu  shall  be  allowed  to  communi- 
cate direct  with  the  governor-general  of  the  Philippine  islands  in 
making  complaint  against  the  commanding  officer  of  Sulu  or 
against  any  naval  commander. 


190  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

ARTICLE  VII.  The  introduction  of  firearms  and  war  materials; 
is  forbidden  except  under  specific  authority  of  the  governor-general 
of  the  Philippines. 

-ARTICLE  VIII.  Piracy  must  be  suppressed  and  the  sultan  and 
his  datos  agree  to  heartily  co-operate  with  the  United  States 
authorities  to  that  end  and  to  make  every  possible  effort  to  arrest 
and  bring  to  justice  all  persons  engaged  in  piracy. 

ARTICLE  IX.  Where  crimes  are  committed  by  Moros  against 
Moros  the  government  of  the  sultan  will  bring  to  trial  and  punish- 
ment the  criminals  and  offenders  who  will  be  delivered  to  the 
government  of  the  sultan  by  the  United  States  authorities  if  in 
their  possession.  In  all  other  cases  persons  charged  with  crimes 
or  offenses  will  be  delivered  to  the  United  States  authorities  for 
trial  and  punishment. 

ARTICLE  X.  Any  slave  in  the  archipelago  of  Sulu  shall  have 
the  right  to  purchase  freedom  by  paying  to  the  master  the  usual 
market  value. 

ARTICLE  XI.  At  present  Americans  or  foreigners  wishing  to  go 
into  the  country  should  state  their  wishes  to  the  Moro  authorities 
and  ask  for  an  escort,  but  it  is  hoped  this  will  become  unnecessary 
as  we  know  each  other  better. 

ARTICLE  XII.  The  United  States  will  give  full  protection  to 
the  sultan  and  his  subjects  in  case  any  foreign  nation  should  at- 
tempt to  impose  upon  them. 

^  ARTICLE  XIII.  The  United  States  will  not  sell  the  island  of 
Sulu  or  any  other  island  of  the  Sulu  archipelago  to  any  foreign 
nation  without  the  consent  of  the  sultan  of  Sulu. 

ARTICLE  XIV.  The  United  States  government  will  pay  the  fol- 
lowing monthly  salaries: 

To  the  sultan $250 

To  Dato  Rajah  Muda    75 

To  Dato  Attik 60 

To  Dato  Calbe   75 

To  Dato  Joakanian  75 

To  Dato  Puyo 60 

To  Dato  Amir  Haissin 60 

To  Hadji  Buter 60 

To  Habib  Mura   40 

To  Serif  Saguin , 15 

Signed  in  triplicate,  in  English  and  Sulu,  at  Jolo,  this 
20th  day  of  August,  A.  D.,  1899,   (13th  Arakuil  Akil, 

THE  SULTAN  OF  SULU. 
DATO  RAJAH. 
DATO  ATTIK. 
DATO  CALBE. 
DATO  JOAKAXIAX. 
Signed  J.  C.  BATES,  Brig.-Gen.,  U.  S.  V. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  191 


X.  / 

THE  OHIO  PLATFORM. 

The  Ohio  democratic  convention  was  the  political  event  of  last 
week.  The  platform  adopted,  and  reproduced  on  page  five  of  this 
issue,  made  a  strong  presentation  of  some  of  the  issues  but  failed 
to  reaffirm  the  Kansas  City  platform. 

It  began  with  municipal  and  state  issues  and  the  handiwork 
of  Mayor  Tom  L.  Johnson  was  evident  in  the  terse  and  emphatic 
declaration  of  democratic  principles  so  far  as  they  apply  to  local 
questions.  The  necessity  for  municipal  reform  is  an  urgent  one 
and  there  is  sound  democracy  in  the  plank  demanding  that  the 
people  be  given  an  opportunity  to  vote  on  questions  involving  the 
granting  or  extending  of  a  franchise. 

The  plank  which  declares  that  "steam  and  electric  railroads 
and  other  corporations  possessing  public  franchises  shall  be  assessed 
in  the  same  proportion  to  their  salable  value  as  are  farms  and 
city  real  estate"  is  both  logical  and  just,  but  it  is  likely  to  offend 
the  very  people  who  were  to  be  conciliated  by  an  evasion  of  the 
silver  question. 

The  plank  against  passes  is  all  right,  but  will  not  make  votes 
among  the  so-called  conservatives.  The  platform  urges  tariff  re- 
form. 

The  anti-trust  plank  would  have  been  stronger  if  it  had  re- 
iterated the  Kansas  City  platform  on  the  subject.  The  free  list 
and  the  prevention  of  railroad  discriminations  are  good  so  far 
as  they  go,  but  they  do  not  go  far  enough.  Whenever  a  trust 
can  export  its  goods  to  other  countries,  it  can  live  here  without 
any  tariff.  Something  more  than  free  trade  is  necessary  to  such 
a  case.  Absolute  fairness  in  railroad  rates  is  desirable,  but  even 
this  will  not  make  private  monopolies  impossible.  The  Kansas 
City  platform  suggested  a  complete  remedy — the  only  one  yet  pro- 
posed— and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  Ohio  convention  was  so 
prejudiced  against  the  last  national  platform  of  the  party  that  it 
ignored  a  remedy  endorsed  by  more  than  six  million  voters. 

The   plank   condemning  imperialism   criticises  the   republican 


192  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

policy  without  pointing  out  a  remedy.  Here  again  the  failure 
to  reaffirm  the  Kansas  City  platform  has  weakened  the  Ohio  de- 
mocracy. 

The  convention  endorsed  the  proposition  to  elect  senators  by 
the  people.  The  labor  plank  is  excellent,  but  those  who  wrote 
the  platform  failed,  either  intentionally  or  unintentionally,  to 
mention  government  by  injunction,  the  black  list  and  arbitration. 
A  reaffirmation  of  the  Kansas  City  platform  would  have  covered 
these  points  also,  but  having  failed  to  reaffirm,  the  convention 
should  have  been  careful  to  touch  on  all  the  important  questions. 

The  convention  not  only  failed,  but  refused  to  endorse  or  reaffirm 
the  Kansas  City  platform,  and,  from  the  manner  in  which  the 
gold  element  has  rejoiced  over  this  feature  of  the  convention,  one 
would  suppose  that  the  main  object  of  the  convention  was  not 
to  write  a  new  platform,  but  to  repudiate  the  one  upon  which 
the  last  national  campaign  was  fought. 

Mr.  Finley  was  right  in  insisting  upon  a  vote  on  his  resolution 
endorsing  the  Kansas  City  platform,  but  he  made  a  mistake  in 
including  in  his  resolution  a  complimentary  reference  to  Mr. 
Bryan.  Mr.  Bryan  is  not  a  candidate  for  any  office,  and  a  men- 
tion of  him  might  have  been  construed  by  some  as  an  endorsement 
of  him  for  office.  The  vote  should  have  been  upon  the  naked 
proposition  to  endorse  the  platform  of  last  year,  and  then  no  one 
could  have  excused  his  abandonment  of  democratic  principles  by 
pleading  his  dislike  for  Mr.  Bryan.  The  cause  ought  not  to  be 
made  to  bear  the  sins  of  an  individual.  Mr.  Bryan  will  endure 
without  complaint  any  punishment  which  the  democracy  of  Ohio 
may  see  fit  to  administer  to  him,  but  he  does  not  want  his  name 
used  to  the  injury  of  a  good  platform. 

The  gold  papers  assume  that  the  convention  refused  to  adopt 
the  Kansas  City  platform  because  it  contained  a  silver  plank.  If 
so,  it  would  have  been  more  courageous  to  have  declared  openly 
for  the  gold  standard.  If  the  gold  standard  is  good,  it  ought 
to  have  been  endorsed — if  bad,  it  ought  to  have  been  denounced. 
To  ignore  the  subject  entirely  was  inexcusable. 

The  money  question  is  not  yet  out  of  politics.  Every  session 
of  Congress  will  have  to  deal  with  it.  Eepublicans  declare  that  it 
is  dead  but  they  keep  working  at  it.  At  the  last  session  of  Con- 
gress they  tried  to  make  the  silver  dollar  redeemable  in  gold  and 
when  that  is  accomplished  they  will  try  to  limit  the  legal  tender 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  193 

qualities  of  the  dollar.  The  gold  standard  will  not  be  complete 
until  gold  is  the  only  legal  tender  money  and  bank  notes  the 
only  paper  money.  Then  our  supply  of  primary  money  will  be 
controlled  by  foreign  financiers,  and  our  supply  of  credit  money 
by  domestic  financiers. 

This  plan  has  been  developed  gradually  and  every  step  has  been 
taken  secretly  and  stealthily.  The  republican  leaders  have  been 
in  this  movement  for  years ;  as  soon  as  the  democratic  party  found 
that  some  of  its  leaders  had  joined  the  conspiracy  those  leaders 
were  deposed.  It  looks  now  as  if  the  reactionary  influences  were 
once  more  trying  to  secure  control.  If  they  succeed  in  Ohio  or 
elsewhere  it  simply  means  another  gigantic  struggle  such  as  was 
witnessed  in  1896'.  The  democratic  party  cannot  be  made  a  pluto- 
cratic party  even  if  there  was  room  in  this  country  for  two  such 
parties.  There  was  a  time,  under  the  Cleveland  regime,  when 
the  party  leaders  used  general  and  ambiguous  phrases  to  deceive 
the  voters,  but  that  scheme  cannot  be  worked  again.  We  cannot 
expect  the  voters  to  have  confidence  in  the  party  unless  the  party 
has  confidence  in  the  voters  and  if  the  party  has  confidence  in  the 
voters  it  will  state  its  position  on  all  the  important  questions  be- 
fore the  country  and  invite  judgment. 

The  present  campaign  involves  a  senator,  as  well  as  a  state 
ticket,  and  as  the  convention  dealt  with  other  national  questions, 
it  should  have  dealt  candidly  and  honestly  with  the  money  question. 
Mr.  McLean  is  supposed  to  be  a  candidate  for  the  United  States 
Senate,  and  is  also  supposed  to  have  dictated  that  portion  of  the 
platform  which  has  to  do  with  national  issues.  The  senator  elected 
by  the  next  Ohio  legislature  will  have  to  vote  on  the  money  ques- 
tion. The  democratic  party  of  the  nation  is  opposed  to  making 
the  silver  dollar  a  promise  to  pay  gold,  and  is  also  opposed  to  sub- 
stituting national  bank  notes  for  government  paper,  but  the  demo- 
cratic party  in  Ohio  was  silent  upon  these  important  subjects. 
Why?  Did  the  leaders  ignore  the  money  question  in  order  to 
please  those  who  bolted  ?  Or  does  Mr.  McLean  want  to  be  left  free 
to  affiliate  with  the  republicans  on  financial  questions  in  case  of 
his  election? 

Mr.  Kilbourne,  the  nominee  for  governor,  is  an  excellent  man, 
a  life-long  democrat  and  an  active  supporter  of  the  national  ticket 
in  both  1896  and  1900.  He  is  better  than  his  platform.  He  de- 
serves and  should  receive  the  vote  of  every  democrat  in  Ohio. 


194  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

If  any  of  the  Ohio  democrats  feel  aggrieved  because  the  re- 
orgaiming  clement  of  the  party  triumphed  at  the  convention  let 
them  not  visit  their  disappointment  upon  the  state  ticket  but  rather 
see  to  the  nomination  of  senators  and  representatives  who  will 
select  a  trustworthy  senator.  Let  them  see  to  it  also  that  the  state 
platform  is  made  at  the  primaries  next  time  rather  than  at  the 
convention.  If  the  voters  at  the  primaries  had  instructed  their 
delegates  to  insist  upon  the  reaffirmation  of  the  Kansas  City  plat- 
form the  result  would  have  been  different. 


THE  SOUTH  NOT  EXCLUDED. 

In  the  discussion  of  possible  presidential  candidates  some  are 
prone  to  regard  the  sectional  question  as  of  overshadowing  impor- 
tance. Those  who  live  in  what  are  known  as  the  doubtful  states 
are  especially  liable  to  this  error,  because  they  are  naturally  willing 
to  furnish  the  candidates.  It  is  not  only  customary  to  look  to  a 
few  doubtful  states  to  furnish  the  candidates,  but  it  is  not  uncom- 
mon to  have  some  portions  of  the  country  excluded  from  consider- 
ation entirely.  For  years  it  has  been  assumed  that  a  southern  man 
was  unavailable,  and  a  western  man  almost  as  much  so.  New 
York,  Ohio,  Illinois  and  Indiana  have  furnished  to  the  two  lead- 
ing parties  nearly  all  the  candidates  nominated  since  the  civil  war. 
New  York  furnished  the  democratic  presidential  candidate  in  1868, 
1872,  1876, 1880,  1884,  1888,  and  1892,  and  in  those  campaigns  the 
candidate  for  vice-president  came  from  Indiana  three  times,  from 
Ohio  once,  and  from  Illinois  once.  From  1868  to  1900  the  republi- 
can party  took  its  presidential  candidate  from  Ohio  four  times, 
from  Illinois  twice,  from  Indiana  twice,  and  from  Maine  once. 
During  that  time  New  York  has  furnished  the  republican  candi- 
date for  vice-president  in  five  campaigns,  Indiana  once,  and  New 
Jersey  once.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  a  comparatively  small  sec- 
tion of  the  country  has  enjoyed  a  practical  monopoly  on  candidates. 
This  is  an  unfortunate  condition,  and  one  that  cannot  be  defended 
by  reason.  Candidates  should  be  chosen  because  they  represent  prin- 
ciples and  because  they  are  deemed  fit  to  serve  the  people  in  the 
executive  office.  Each  party  should  be  at  liberty  to  select  its  best 
man,  no  matter  in  what  state  or  section  he  lives.  The  race  should 
be  free  for  all,  and  then  public  men  everywhere  would  be  stimulated 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  195 

to  offer  themselves.  Xeither  the  Atlantic  coast  nor  the  Pacific 
coast  should  be  barred  out;  neither  the  extreme  north  nor  the 
extreme  south  should  be  forbidden  to  offer  its  favorite  son.  The 
local  influence  of  a  nomination  is  generally  overestimated.  State 
pride  is  a  nice  thing  to  talk  about,  but  it  does  not  count  for  much 
in  votes.  If  a  man  has  qualities  which  make  him  popular  at  home, 
those  same  qualities  will  make  him  popular  elsewhere,  but  very 
few  men  will  vote  for  a  political  opponent  merely  because  he  lives 
in  their  state,  and  what  little  support  he  wins  in  that  way  is  offset 
by  the  partisan  fear  that  his  success  may  strengthen  his  party 
locally.  A  candidate's  strength  comes  from  the  principles  and 
policies  for  which  he  stands — the  only  personal  element  being  the 
confidence  that  the  people  have  that  he  is  honest  and  will  faithfully 
carry  out  his  platform. 

For  a  quarter  of  a  century  the  southern  states  have  been  ig- 
nored in  the  selection  of  candidates.  The  republicans  have  had 
but  few  white  republicans  in  the  South  to  choose  from,  and  the 
democrats  of  the  South  have  voluntarily  renounced  their  claims 
out  of  fear  that  they  might  embarrass  the  ticket.  Certainly  we 
are  far  enough  away  from  the  civil  war — certainly  the  passions 
aroused  by  that  conflict  are  sufficiently  cooled,  to  permit  a  southern 
man  to  aspire  to  either  the  presidency  or  the  vice-presidency. 
Even  before  the  Spanish  war  called  into  the  volunteer  army  both 
federal  and  confederate,  the  South  had  earned  its  right  to  be  con- 
sidered a  part  of  the  Union,  but  surely  the  commingling  of  the 
sons  of  those  who  wore  the  blue,  and  the  sons  of  those  who  wore 
the  gray,  and  their  service  side  by  side  at  Santiago  and  at  Manila, 
ought  to  silence  those  who  have  thought  it  unwise  to  place  a 
southern  man  on  the  ticket.  Slavery  has  gone  never  to  be  restored, 
and  the  democracy  now  dominant  both  North  and  South  comes 
nearer  to  the  ideals  of  Jefferson  and  Lincoln  than  does  the  com- 
mercialism of  Hanna  or  the  imperialism  of  Eoosevelt. 

It  is  not  time  yet  to  select  candidates  for  1904,  but  when  the 
time  arrives,  the  democratic  voters  should  see  to  it  that  the  plat- 
form represents  their  wishes  and  that  the  candidates  fit  the  plat- 
form. 

If  some  one  living  south  of  the  Mason-Dixon  line  is  chosen  for 
either  the  first  or  second  position  on  the  ticket,  his  place  of  resi- 
dence will  not  weaken  him — not  though  he  be  an  ex-confederate 
soldier.  We  are  engaged  in  a  mighty  struggle  against  plutocracy, 


196  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

and  we  need  the  whole  nation  to  pick  from  when  we  select  our 
standard  bearers.  Merit,  not  section,  should  determine  the  nomi- 
nation; fidelity  to  principle,  not  locality,  should  control. 


A  FALSE  CHARGE. 

The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  has  received  a  clipping  contain- 
ing the  following  charge  against  Senator  James  K.  Jones,  of 
Arkansas : 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  June  24. 

EDITOR  GLOBE: — I  see  by  last  Wednesday's  New  York  papers 
that  the  great  Cotton  trust  held  a  meeting  in  New  York  city,  and 
among  the  directors  elected  was  Jas.  K.  Jones,  of  Arkansas,  who 
is  the  chairman  of  the  national  democratic  committee.  Now,  then, 
as  our  great  standard-bearer,  William  Jennings  Bryan,  fought  out 
his  campaign  against  trusts  and  tyranny,  which  was  one  of  our 
principal  issues,  I  move  that  Jones  step  down  and  out,  as  we 
want  no  schemers  or  trust  officials  in  our  ranks.  Very  truly, 

JAMES  PETIT. 

This  charge  was  made  during  the  late  campaign,  and  the  editor 
of  THE  COMMONER  investigated  it.  On  another  page  will  be  found 
a  letter  written  by  Senator  Jones  to  Mr.  Lesueur,  then  editor  of 
the  Kansas  City  Times,  setting  forth  the  facts. 

Senator  Jones  owns  some  of  the  common  stock  of  the  American 
Cotton  Company.  His  letter  explains  that  he  became  interested 
in  the  Graves  patent  for  making  a  round  cotton  bale.  A  question 
of  infringement  arose,  and  the  parties  interested,  instead  of  settling 
it  by  a  lawsuit,  compromised,  each  claimant  taking  an  interest  in 
the  patent.  As  the  development  of  the  patent  required  a  large 
amount  of  money,  a  corporation  was  formed.  Senator  Jones  as 
a  part  owner  of  the  patent  received  stock  in  the  company  and 
was  made  one  of  the  directors.  This  company  has  been  called  a 
trust,  but  it  has  none  of  the  characteristics  of  a  trust.  In  the 
first  place,  it  operates  under  a  patent,  and  the  opponents  of  trusts 
make  no  war  on  patents.  A  patent  is  granted  for  a  limited  period 
as  a  reward  to  one  who  gives  to  the  world  a  new  idea.  A  patent 
is  an  act  of  justice  to  the  inventor  and  an  incentive  to  further 
invention.  The  democratic  party  has  never  condemned  the  patent 
system,  nor  has  it  condemned  those  who  by  means  of  patents  en- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  197 

joy  a  temporary  monopoly  of  their  inventions.  But  the  demo- 
cratic party  does  condemn  those  who,  without  giving  to  the  public 
any  new  or  useful  idea,  endeavor  to  secure  a  permanent  monopoly 
of  the  production  of  some  necessary  of  life.  The  difference  be- 
tween a  patent  and  an  industrial  monopoly  is  so  great  and  so 
plain  that  no  one  need  confuse  them. 

It  has  been  alleged  that  the  company  with  which  Senator  Jones 
is  connected  has  a  monopoly  of  the  business  of  compressing  cotton. 
If  this  were  true  and  the  monopoly  rested  upon  a  patent,  it 
would  not  be  a  trust  within  the  ordinary  meaning  of  the  word, 
but  as  a  matter  of  fact,  Mr.  Jones'  company  does  not  handle  ten 
per  cent,  of  the  cotton  compressed  in  the  United  States — it  is 
nearer  five  per  cent.  The  republicans  say  nothing  about  a  salt 
trust  that  controls  ninety-five  per  cent,  of  the  output  of  salt,  but 
make  a  great  ado  about  a  patent  which  is  used  in  compressing  but 
a  small  portion  of  the  cotton  crop. 

The  company  has  been  criticised  for  renting  its  machines  in- 
stead of  selling  them  outright,  but  as  the  patent  law  does  not 
prohibit  the  leasing  of  a  patented  article  and  as  this  method  of 
realizing  on  a  patent  is  quite  common,  it  does  not  furnish  valid 
ground  for  complaint.  Senator  Jones  explains  in  his  letter  that 
while  the  company,  when  desired,  buys  cotton  from  those  who 
use  the  round  bale  process,  it  does  not  require  them  to  sell  to 
the  company. 

In  this  connection  the  editor  calls  attention  to  a  suggestion 
which  he  has  made  on  a  former  occasion,  namely,  that  there  should 
be  a  value  limit  as  well  as  a  time  limit  to  a  patent.  In  other 
words,  that  the  patent  should  expire  whenever  a  reasonable  sum 
(the  amount  to  be  fixed  by  law)  has  been  realized  from  it.  But 
even  if  such  a  law  were  now  in  force,  it  would  not  affect  the  cot- 
ton company,  for  the  owners  of  the  patent  have  not  yet  realized 
any  considerable  profit  on  the  money  invested  in  the  patent. 

This  matter  has  been  considered  at  some  length  because  the 
republicans,  unable  to  defend  the  attitude  of  their  party  on  the 
trust  question,  have  sought  to  dodge  the  issue  by  bringing  accusa- 
tion against  Senator  Jones,  the  chairman  of  the  democratic  na- 
tional committee. 

During  the  campaign  the  only  reply  made  by  republicans,  when 
charged  with  friendliness  to  trusts,  was  that  Tammany  leaders  were 
interested  in  an  ice  trust  and  that  Senator  Jones  was  interested 


198  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

in  a  cotton  trust.  As  soon  as  the  campaign  was  over  it  was  found 
that  Governor  Koosevelt  had,  for  political  reasons,  suppressed 
Mayor  Van  Wyck's  answer,  and  it  also  developed  that  the  republi- 
can senate  refused  to  consider  the  house  anti-trust  bill  when  Senator 
Jones  tried  to  call  it  up. 


THE  STEEL  STRIKE. 

A  strike  is  on  between  organized  labor  and  the  Steel  Company, 
and  it  seems  to  involve  the  right  of  labor  to  organize  for  its  own 
protection.  President  Shaffer  who  represents  the  men  is  confident 
of  success,  while  the  officers  of  the  Steel  Trust  as  yet  show  no 
sign  of  weakening.  Mr.  Shaffer  says  that  the  men  will  not  resort 
to  force  and  that  there  will  be  no  destruction  of  property.  As  long 
as  this  .promise  is  kept  public  sympathy  will  be  with  the  laboring 
men. 

The  right  of  labor  to  organize  ought  not  to  be  questioned,  and 
yet  the  growth  of  trusts  is  directly  opposed  to  the  interests  of  the 
laboring  men,  and,  as  every  trust  is  a  menace  to  the  labor  organiza- 
tions, it  is  strange  that  any  laboring  man  votes  with  the  trusts. 
When  the  head  of  a  great  corporation  controls  all  the  factories 
which  employ  skilled  labor  in  any  particular  line  he  is  very  likely 
to  dictate  terms.  Capital  does  not  need  food  or  clothing.  If  it 
remains  idle  for  a  month  or  a  year  its  owner  simply  loses  his  in- 
come for  the  period  of  its  idleness,  but  with  the  laboring  man 
it  is  different.  His  hunger  cannot  be  suspended,  his  need  for 
clothing  and  shelter  knows  no  cessation;  the  children  must  be 
cared  for,  and  with  all  of  the  nation's  boasted  prosperity  the  aver- 
age wage-earner  is  not  able  to  live  long  without  work.  Hereto- 
fore the  laborer  has  found  his  protection  in  the  fact  that  the 
employer  could  not  close  down  his  factory  for  a  great  length  of  time 
without  loss  of  trade  and  loss  of  employes.  In  case  of  a  strike 
his  business  was  in  danger  of  being  absorbed  by  other  firms,  and 
his  employes  were  apt  to  be  scattered.  When,  however,  the  monop- 
oly of  an  industry  is  complete  the  employe  cannot  seek  work  of  a 
rival  firm  because  there  is  no  rival  firm  and  he  cannot  engage  in 
other  business  without  losing  the  advantage  of  his  skill  and  ex- 
perience. It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  laboring  men  w,ill  win  in  the 
present  conflict,  but  if  they  were  as  unanimous  on  election  day 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  199 

as  they  are  when  a  strike  is  ordered  they  could  remedy  their  griev- 
ances without  a  strike  or  loss  of  employment. 

The  steel  trust  may  prove  a  blessing  in  disguise  if  it  convinces 
the  wage-earners  of  the  country  that  "a  private  monopoly  is  in- 
defensible and  intolerable." 


NOT  A  NEW  CONVERT. 

The  New  York  Journal  is  in  error  in  assuming  that  Bryan  is 
a  new  convert  to  municipal  ownership.  In  a  recent  issue  the 
Journal  said : 

The  Philadelphia  franchise  steal  has  brought  out  a  welcome 
declaration  from  William  J.  Bryan.  Mr.  Bryan  took  advantage  of 
a  visit  to  Philadelphia  on  Saturday  to  say  : 

"If  franchises  are  to  be  turned  over  to  private  individuals  or 
corporations,  the  transfer  should  be  arranged  upon  the  best  terms 
possible  for  the  city.  But  I  believe  that  municipal  ownership  of 
water  plants,  lighting  plants  and  street  car  lines  is  the  best  solution 
of  the  problem." 

The  time  was  when  the  democratic  leader  in  the  last  two 
national  campaigns  did  not  appreciate  the  idea  of  public  owner- 
ship. He  distrusted  it  as  a  little  too  much  like  paternalism  for  an 
old-fashioned  Jeffersonian  democrat. 

But  men  like  Quay  and  Ashbridge  are  rapidly  extinguishing 
that  type  of  democracy.  They  are  making  it  evident  that  the  issue 
is  no  longer  between  one  economic  theory  and  another,  but  between 
honesty  and  theft.  And  on  such  an  issue  nobody  could  doubt  Mr. 
Bryan's  position. 

Mr.  Bryan  has  always  favored  the  municipal  ownership  of  water 
and  lighting  plants  and  for  several  years  has  Relieved  in  the  mu- 
nicipal ownership  of  street  car  lines.  THE  COMMONER  in  its 
issue  of  March  1st  said: 

Some  of  our  contemporaries  are  discussing  the  relative  merits 
of  an  inheritance  tax  and  a  tax  on  franchises.  Why  not  have  both  ? 
One  does  not  interfere  with  the  other  and  both  are  meritorious. 
In  the  course  of  time  the  cities  will  own  and  operate  their  water 
systems,  their  lighting  plants  and  their  street  car  lines,  but  until 
that  time  comes  municipal  and  other  franchises  ought  to  be  made 
to  contribute  to  the  expenses  of  government. 

This  is  sufficient  proof  that  Mr.  Quay's  Philadelphia  grab  is  not 
responsible  for  Mr.  Bryan's  views  on  this  subject. 


2oo  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Mr.  Bryan  lias  been  dealing  with  national  questions  and,  while 
he  was  his  party's  candidate,  did  not  feel  justified  in  adding  to  the 
reforms  enumerated  in  the  platform,  but  as  a  citizen  he  is  interested 
in  all  questions  affecting  the  government  and  as  an  editor  he  will 
discuss  all  questions  upon  which  the  people  ate  called  to  act. 


ADMIRAL  SCHLEY. 

When  the  first  news  reached  the  American  people  concerning 
the  Santiago  naval  battle  the  impression  was  that  Admiral  Samp- 
son was  the  real  hero  of  the  occasion.  This  was  due  to  the  fact 
that  Admiral  Sampson  sent  to  the  president  a  message  in  which 
he  said  that  "the  fleet  under  my  command"  offered  the  American 
nation  the  Santiago  victory  as  a  Fourth  of  July  present.  But  as 
soon  as  the  newspaper  reports  and  the  statements  of  eye  witnesses 
came  in,  it  developed  that  Admiral  Sampson,  while  theoretically 
in  command  of  the  American  fleet,  was  at  least  twelve  miles  from 
the  scene  of  battle,  and  that  it  was  Admiral  Schley  who  commanded 
and  led  the  splendid  fight.  Immediately  a  systematic  attack  was 
opened  upon  Schley,  although  that  great  sailor  did  not  indulge  in 
boasting  of  any  character.  In  reply  to  a  question  he  said  "there 
is  glory  enough  in  this  victory  for  all  of  us."  Since  then  the  ad- 
herents of  Sampson  and  the  administration  politicians  have  kept 
the  newspapers  filled  with  things  intended  to  discredit  Schley,  but 
that  officer  has  maintained  a  dignified  silence. 

Finally,  because  of  formal  and  serious  attacks  made  upon  him, 
Admiral  Schley  has  been  forced,  in  defense  of  his  manhood,  to 
demand  a  court  of  inquiry.  His  statements  to  the  newspapers  after, 
having  demanded  this  court  of  inquiry  are  characteristic  of  the 
man.  He  said,  "It  is  a  very  great  pity  that  there  should  be  a  con- 
troversy over  matters  wherein  everybody  did  his  best."  How  dif- 
ferent this  is  from  the  attitude  assumed  by  the  enemies  of  Admiral 
Schley. 

It  is  indeed  a  very  great  pity  that  there  should  be  any  contro- 
versy over  a  matter  wherein  the  world  has  given  credit  where 
credit  belongs.  It  is  indeed  a  pity  that  there  should  be  any  con- 
troversy that  seeks  to  discredit  a  brave,  honorable  and  modest  sea- 
fighter,  who  successfully  led  the  American  forces  in  one  of  the 
greatest,  if  not  the  greatest,  naval  battles  in  the  history  of  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  261 

world.  It  is  indeed  a  very  great  pity  that  the  politicians  and  the 
bureaucrats  having  the  favor  of  this  administration  should  insist 
upon  discrediting  and  abusing  a  man  who  has  served  his  country 
so  faithfully  as  Winfield  Scott  Schley  has  served  the  United  States 
of  America. 

Admiral  Sampson's  friends  should  be  satisfied  with  the  fact  that 
their  favorite  obtained  the  prize  money  won  in  a  battle  in  which 
he  did  not  participate,  and  that  his  face  is  to  grace  a  medal  that 
is  to  commemorate  a  fight  in  which  he  did  not  take  part.  It  should 
be  sufficient  for  them  that  Admiral  Schley  has  never  made  any 
claim  as  to  his  part  in  the  great  battle  in  Santiago  Bay;  that  he 
has  been  content  for  the  newspaper  correspondents  and  other  wit- 
nesses to  give  the  facts  to  the  American  people.  The  difficulty  is 
that  these  statements  have  convinced  the  American  people  that 
Schley  was  the  real  hero  of  the  day  and  entitled  to  all  the  honors 
at  the  hands  of  a  grateful  people,  even  though  he  is  denied  the 
emoluments  in  the  way  of  prize  money  and  medals. 


NO  MIDDLE  GKOUND. 

If  any  one  thinks  that  plutocracy  can  be  placated  by  an  aban- 
donment of  silver,  let  him  read  the  New  York  Sun.  That  paper 
has  earned  the  right  to  be  considered  the  chief  exponent  of  the 
money  worshipping  element  in  American  politics.  Instead  of 
thanking  the  Ohio  democrats  for  ignoring  the  money  question, 
it  warns  them  that  anti-trust  legislation  would  be  more  dangerous 
to  the  country  and  free  silver.  It  says: 

"We  demand  the  suppression  of  all  trusts."  There  is  a  mon- 
strous proposition.  Were  there  any  way  of  carrying  it  into  effect 
industrial  disaster  more  widespread  and  ruinous  than  has  ever 
fallen  upon  the  country  would  be  the  result.  There  would  be  a 
commercial  cataclysm.  The  amount  of  capital  and  of  labor  de- 
pendent upon  these  combinations  is  so  vast  that  to  crush  them 
would  be  to  bring  on  unparalleled  economic  calamity  compared 
with  which  the  free  coinage  of  silver  would  have  been  a  fly  bite." 

So,  we  are  to  have  a  panic  and  all  sorts  of  calamity  if  we  de- 
stroy the  trusts?  Well,  this  is  discouraging.  But  it  only  shows 
that  there  is  running  through  all  the  republican  policies,  the  same 
vicious  principle  and  every  policy  is  defended  by  the  same  brutal 


2O2  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

argument:  "Accept  our  policies;  submit  to  OUT  demands,  or 
we  will  bring  on  a  panic!"  Some  think  that  they  can  make 
peace  with  the  money  trust  and  then  fight  the  other  trusts,  but  it 
is  a  vain  hope.  There  is  no  middle  ground.  The  democratic 
party  must  be  with  the  people  entirely  or  against  them  entirely. 
The  moment  it  begins  to  compromise  it  loses  more  than  it  can 
possibly  gain. 

EQUALITY  IN  TAXATION. 

The  Ohio  democratic  platform  demands  that  railroad  and  street 
car  lines  shall  bear  their  fair  share  of  taxation.  The  plank  reads 
as  follows: 

Steam  and  electric  railroads  and  other  corporations  possessing 
public  franchises  shall  be  assessed  in  the  same  proportion  to  their 
salable  value  are  are  farms  and  city  real  estate. 

Who  will  deny  the  proposition  therein  stated  ?  Who  will  assume 
to  suggest  a  different  basis  of  assessment?  The  railroad  enjoys  the 
right  of  eminent  domain;  it  can  take  any  property  it  wants  for 
railroad  purposes.  The  state  surrenders  to  it  enough  of  sovereignty 
to  enable  it  to  demand  any  man's  land,  even  his  homestead,  upon 
the  tender  of  its  salable  value.  The  street  car  line  enjoys  a  valu- 
able franchise,  usually  secured  from  the  people's  representatives 
without  the  knowledge  of  the  people  themselves.  Why  should  the 
ordinary  individual,  who  receives  from  his  government  no  fran- 
chises, bonuses,  subsidies,  or  special  privileges,  pay  taxes  upon  the 
full  value  of  his  land,  while  the  railroads  and  the  street  car  lines 
pay  taxes  on  but  a  small  per  cent,  of  the  value  of  their  property? 
Why  should  the  farmer  be  compelled  to  pay  taxes  on  the  full  value 
upon  his  horses,  cattle,  hogs,  and  other  walking  stock,  while  rail- 
roads and  street  car  lines  pay  on  but  a  small  per  cent,  of  the  value 
of  their  rolling  stock?  Mayor  Johnson  is  responsible  for  the  in- 
sertion of  this  plank,  and  it  is  eminently  just.  The  candidates 
upon  the  state  ticket  can  afford  to  challenge  their  opponents  to 
discuss  this  proposition  before  the  people  of  their  state.  Equality 
before  the  law  is  a  maxim  that  is  being  more  and  more  ignored. 
The  democrats  of  Ohio  are  to  be  congratulated  upon  their  attempts 
to  revive  this  principle  in  state  affairs.  They  would  have  been 
wiser  if  they  had  applied  it  to  national  affairs  as  well. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  203 

DEMOCRATIC  REMEDY  FOR  TRUSTS. 

Mr.  Louis  F.  Post,  one  of  the  best  of  men,  editor  of  the  Public, 
one  of  the  most  valuable  of  our  weekly  papers,  takes  the  editor  of 
THE  COMMONER  to  task  for  suggesting  again  the  trust  remedy  pro- 
posed by  him  more  than  a  year  ago,  and  endorsed  by  the  Kansas 
City  convention.  Mr.  Post  is  so  conscientious  in  his  criticism  that 
he  deserves  more  attention  than  those  who  find  fault  merely  for 
the  pleasure  it  gives  them  to  do  so. 

The  remedy  proposed  by  Mr.  Bryan  is,  briefly,  that,  in  addi- 
tion to  state  legislation,  there  should  be  a  federal  law,  shutting 
the  corporation  up  in  the  state  of  its  origin,  or  prohibiting  it 
from  engaging  in  interstate  commerce,  until  it  shows  that  there 
is  no  water  in  its  stock,  and  that  it  is  not  trying  to  monopolize 
any  branch  of  business  or  the  production  of  any  article  of  mer- 
chandise. After  enumerating  the  remedies  above  suggested,  Mr. 
Post  says: 

These  propositions,  coming  from  a  democrat  to  the  democ- 
racy— though  Mr.  Bryan  has  proposed  them  before,  and  thereby 
smoothed  the  way  for  them — must  be  at  least  disturbing  to  men 
who  shrink  from  the  republican  tendency,  already  alarmingly 
strong,  to  centralize  all  power  in  the  national  government ;  while 
those  who  dread  the  advances  of  socialism,  must  be  aghast  at 
this  democratic  proposition  to  strengthen  enormously  the  founda- 
tions already  laid  for  making  of  the  American  government  a 
great  socialistic  state.  All  these  proposals  for  federal  action  are 
centralizing,  federalistic,  and  in  an  objectionable  sense  socialistic, 
save  only  one — that  with  reference  to  the  abolition  of  protection 
for  trust-made  goods.  Judged  only  by  his  remedy,  Mr.  Bryan 
might  fairly  be  supposed  to  have  decided  the  issue  of  competition 
versus  socialism  against  competition.  Yet  that  is  not  what  he 
intends  to  do.  He  believes  that  this  complex  machinery  in  re- 
straint of  free  trade  would  extinguish  private  monopoly. 

Laws  must  deal  with  conditions,  and  under  present  conditions 
it  is  impossible  to  deal  with  the  trust  question  completely  by  means 
of  state  laws.  A  state  can  prevent  the  organization  of  a  monopoly 
within  its  borders,  and  it  can  prohibit,  or  should  be  able  to,  a 
monopoly  organized  outside  from  doing  business  within  the  state, 
but  this  power  is  not  sufficient.  If  a  trust  has  absolute  control 
of  the  production  of  the  necessaries  of  life,  a  law  preventing  the 
monopoly  from  doing  business  within  a  given  state  might  bring 


2O4  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

great  hardship  upon  the  people  by  depriving  them  of  the  article 
controlled  by  the  trust.  Under  the  Constitution,  Congress  has 
power  to  regulate  interstate  commerce,  and  it  does  not  tend  towards 
centralization  for  Congress  to  exercise  that  power  in  behalf  of  the 
people.  The  law  proposed  would  not  take  from  the  state  any 
right  that  it  now  has;  it  would  not  encroach  upon  the  domain 
of  the  state,  it  would  simply  provide  that  the  state,  while  at  liberty 
to  create  corporations  for  domestic  purposes,  could  not  create  cor- 
porations to  prey  upon  the  people  of  other  states.  Xo  state  ought 
to  permit  a  corporation  to  water  its  stock,  but  if  it  does  what 
harm  can  come  from  requiring  such  corporations  to  confine  their 
business  to  the  state  of  their  origin?  If  the  people  of  a  state 
are  willing  to  create  a  corporation  and  give  it  control  of  an  in- 
dustry in  the  state,  that  is  a  matter  for  the  people  of  that  state, 
but  when  that  corporation  attempts  to  secure  a  monopoly  of  the 
industries  of  other  states,  then  the  people  of  other  states  become 
interested  parties  and,  as  they  cannot  effectively  act  singly,  they 
must  act  together  through  the  power  conferred  upon  Congress  by 
the  Constitution.  Congress  cannot  refuse  to  regulate  interstate 
railroad  rates  on  the  ground  that  the  federal  government  would 
be  exercising  too  mulch  power,  neither  can  Congress  refuse  to  pro- 
tect the  people  against  trusts  on  the  ground  that  the  federal  gov- 
ernment will  be  strengthened.  The  federal  government  was  organ- 
ized to  give  to  the  people  of  the  nation  that  protection  which  must 
be  secured  by  the  joint  action  of  the  people  of  the  several  states, 
and  such  joint  action  is  imperatively  demanded  at  this  time. 

Mr.  Post  assumes  that  the  only  anti-trust  legislation  necessary  is 
to  withdraw  all  special  privileges  granted  by  law. 

Every  trust  or  monopoly  rests  upon  a  corporation,  and  the 
entire  abolition  of  corporations  would  destroy  trusts,  but  Mr. 
Bryan  has  not  believed  it  necessary  to  apply  so  radical  a  remedy. 
He  has  sought  to  eliminate  the  evils  of  corporations  without  de- 
stroying their  advantages.  He  has  sought  to  draw  the  line  at 
the  point  where  they  become  injurious. 

Mr.  Post  asserts  that  a  monopoly  would  be  impossible  without 
the  possession  of  "some  legal  advantage — transportation,  tariff, 
location,  patents  or  sources  of  natural  supply."  It  has  been  pointed 
out  in  a  previous  editorial  that  a  corporation  which  can  export  its 
products  can  have  a  monopoly,  even  under  free  trade.  It  is  also 
true  that  a  monopoly  can  exist  without  any  reliance  upon  dis- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  205 

criminating  freight  rates.  Tariffs  have  benefited  monopolies, 
and  railroad  discriminations  have  aided  them,  but  a  monopoly 
could  exist  without  either.  Patents  have  been  the  foundation  of 
monopoly,  but  such  a  monopoly  is  only  temporary,  and  the  benefits 
of  such  a  monopoly  have  been  given  to  the  owner  of  the  patent 
as  a  reward  for  his  genius.  It  would  be  possible  for  a  monopoly 
to  exist  without  owning  any  of  the  "sources  of  natural  supply." 
We  have,  for  instance,  woollen  mills  enough  in  the  country  now 
to  manufacture  all  the  woollen  goods  needed  by  our  people.  Let 
us  suppose  that  they  join  together  under  one  corporation.  Being 
the  only  purchaser  of  wool,  that  corporation  could  fix  the  price 
of  wool;  it  could  fix  the  price  of  the  manufactured  article,  and 
unless  organized  labor  could  protect  itself  against  such  a  corpora- 
tion, it  could  fix  the  price  of  labor.  It  would  be  very  difficult  if 
not  impossible,  for  a  corporation  having  a  less  capital  to  compete 
with  it,  for  it  would  be  possible  for  the  monopoly  to  reduce  prices 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  competing  factory  and,  by  keeping  up 
prices  elsewhere,  bankrupt  its  small  rival  without  serious  loss  to 
itself.  This  has  been  the  experience  of  many  small  factories. 
Why  permit  the  creation  or  the  continuance  of  a  monopoly  ?  Why 
allow  a  corporation  to  engage  in  interstate  commerce  for  such  a 
purpose?  The  private  monopoly  is  to  the  industries  of  a  nation 
what  the  highwayman  is  to  an  honest  citizen;  the  industrial  life 
of  the  nation  needs  protection  from  the  monopoly  as  much  as 
human  life  needs  protection  from  the  highwayman. 

Mr.  Post  suggests  no  remedy  for  the  trusts,  that  is,  no  specific 
remedy,  he  says:  "Take  away  their  underlying  privileges  of  trans- 
portation, patents  and  land,  and  competition,  actual  or  possible, 
would  make  quick  work  of  their  oppressive  power.  That  is  the  key 
to  the  trust  question." 

Is  it  possible  that  Mr.  Post  believes  that  private  ownership  in 
land  is  the  foundation  of  trusts  ?  If  so,  must  we  calmly  submit  to 
monopolies  until  the  people  are  willing  to  accept  Mr.  Post's  views 
on  the  land  question  ?  Is  it  not  the  part  of  wisdom  to  apply  such 
remedies  as  are  within  our  reach?  There  are  many  very  earnest 
and  very  intelligent  men  who  believe  that  the  private  ownership 
of  lands  is  the  greatest  of  all  evils;  they  believe  that  the  ultimate 
solution  of  the  social  problem  is  to  be  found  in  public  ownership  of 
land,  but  will  they  refuse  to  assist  in  securing  other  methods  of 
relief  until  they  can  try  their  own  method?  Certainly  not.  The 


206  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

single  taxers,  as  the  followers  of  Henry  George  call  themselves, 
have  helped  the  democratic  party  in  recent  campaigns  (and  no 
one  was  more  active  than  Mr.  Post),  not  because  the  democratic 
party  endorsed  the  single  tax  idea,  but  because  the  single  taxers 
were  willing  to  put  the  government  in  the  hands  of  those  who 
believe  in  Jeffersonian  principles,  and  permit  a  trial  of  the  reme- 
dies which  the  democratic  party  proposed. 

Speaking  of  competition,  it  is  only  fair  to  say  that  competition, 
like  any  other  useful  thing,  may  be  carried  to  excess  or,  to  speak 
more  correctly,  there  can  be  fair  competition  only  where  there  is 
measurably  fair  equality  between  competitors.  Competition  be- 
tween the  standard  oil  company  or  the  steel  trust  and  an  ordinary 
individual  is  as  one-sided  as  a  combat  between  two  individuals, 
one  armed  with  bow  and  arrow  and  the  other  with  a  repeating 
rifle.  Society  may  protect  the  principle  of  competition  and  yet 
place  limits  upon  it,  just  as  society  permits  the  collection  of  interest 
and  yet  limits  the  rate.  Fire  is  necessary  to  human  life,  and  yet 
fire  uncontrolled  becomes  a  destructive  force;  water  is  required 
for  man's  existence  and  yet  the  devastating  flood  may  "do  immeasur- 
able damage;  the  air  which  we  breathe  is  indispensable,  and  yet 
when  that  air  is  put  into  violent  motion  it  becomes  the  cyclone  or 
the  tornado.  Competition  is  necessary;  it  is  the  law  of  trade; 
it  is  a  controlling  force  in  human  affairs,  and  yet  it  may  become 
destructive.  If  competition  leads  parents  to  put  their  children  into 
factories  at  an  early  age,  we  pass  laws  fixing  the  age  at  which  chil- 
dren may  be  employed;  if  competition  unreasonably  prolongs  the 
day's  work  we  fix  maximum  limits,  and  so  competition  with  the 
man-made  giant  called  a  corporation  becomes  destructive  of  the 
rights  and  interests  of  the  God-made  man  we  can  place  restrictions 
upon  the  corporation,  prescribe  conditions  upon  which  it  can  en- 
gage in  interstate  commerce,  and  if  necessasry  arbitrarily  fix  the 
amount  of  capital  that  may  be  associated  together  in  one  corpora- 
tion, say  what  proportion  of  the  total  product  one  corporation  may 
control,  or  prohibit  entirely  the  co-operation  of  distinct  and  sepa- 
rate corporations.  All  the  corporations  ask  is  to  be  let  alone  but 
the  people  need  relief  now,  and  we  should  secure  such  relief  as  is 
possible  now.  If,  in  the  years  to  come,  some  better  remedy  is  found 
it  will  be  welcomed  when  it  arrives,  but  those  who  object  to  the 
remedy  suggested  in  the  Kansas  City  platform  do  not  propose  any 
remedy  which  is  complete  or  which  has  a  prospect  of  speedy  trial. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  207 


A  CEITICISM  ANSWEKED. 

My  attention  has  been  called  to  a  communication  published  in 
the  Washington  Post  of  July  15,  from  which  the  following  is  an 
extract : 

It  is  a  well-known  fact,  and  sulsceptible  of  ample  proof,  that 
Mr.  Bryan,  while  conducting  his  campaign  for  election  to  the  office 
of  chief  magistrate  of  this  great  republic,  required  his  admiring 
friends  at  each  point  where  he  addressed  them  throughout  the 
western  states  to  hand  up  to  him  or  his  financial  representatives  an 
envelope  containing  money  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  town. 

In  one  small  town  in  Indiana,  not  very  far  from  Brazil,  the 
democrats  of  the  region  had  expended  the  full  amount  of  the  col- 
lection upon  the  grandstand  from  which  Mr.  Bryan  was  expected  to 
speak.  It  was  decorated  and  presented  a  very  bright  appearance. 
Upon  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Bryan's  train  and  the  meeting  by  him 
of  the  committee  of  beaming  admirers,  Mr.  Bryan  asked  if  any 
person  had  handed  up  the  envelope,  and  upon  being  informed  that 
there  had  been  none  "handed  up,"  he  declined  to  leave  the  train, 
and  remarked  that  he  would  say  from  the  car  platform  that  which 
he  intended  to  utter,  and  declined  to  go  to  the  near-by  platform. 
This  decision  was  made  because  the  quantum  sufficit  was  not  forth- 
coming. This  was  commercialism  with  a  vengeance.  If  men — 
democrats — did  not  pay  him  for  appealing  to  them  for  their  votes 
for  him,  he  cared  not  to  leave  his  sumptuous  railway  train. 

Similar  charges  have  appeared  from  time  to  time  during  the 
last  five  years  and  I  have  answered  them.  Every  person  has  had 
an  opportunity  to  know  of  the  falsity  of  these  charges,  but  as  the 
Washington  Post  is  usually  careful  in  its  statements  I  make  this 
denial  for  its  benefit.  I  never  received  any  compensation  of  any 
kind  from  the  National  Committee,  from  any  State  Committee, 
County  Committee,  or  other  committee,  or  from  any  individual  for 
any  speech  which  I  made  during  the  campaigns  of  1896  and  1900. 
Neither  did  I  ever  have  any  negotiations  with  any  person  or  com- 
mittee in  regard  to  compensation  for  any  speech.  I  have  been  in- 
formed that  in  some  instances  the  expense  of  the  special  train  which 
carried  the  members  of  the  Committee,  the  newspaper  men  and 
myself  was  borne  by  the  towns  visited,  but  I  never  knew  of  the  de- 
tails of  such  arrangements  and  never  received  any  of  the  proceeds 
therefrom ;  neither  was  it  ever  suggested  to  me  that  I  should  refuse 
to  speak  on  any  platform  or  at  a  place  because  the  money  had  not 


208  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

been  raised.  It  often  happened  that  because  of  the  shortness  of 
the  time,  the  lateness  of  the  train,  or  the  density  of  the  crowd 
I  spoke  from  the  rear  of  the  train  rather  than  from  the  platform 
erected,  but  the  change  in  the  program  was  never  due,  at  the  town 
mentioned  or  anywhere  else,  to  the  failure  of  a  local  committee 
to  pay  money  to  the  committee  in  charge  of  the  train  or  to  me. 

Republicans  who  are  both  able  and  willing  to  accept  transporta- 
tion from  the  railroads,  have  frequently  criticised  the  democratic 
committees  for  raising  money  by  subscription  to  pay  for  the  hiring 
of  trains,  but  I  believe  it  much  better  for  our  committees  to  raise 
the  money  necessary  for  excursion  trains,  and  thus  be  free  from 
obligation  to  the  railroad  companies.  I  may  add  that  when  I 
travelled  alone  I  paid  my  own  travelling  expenses. 

The  same  correspondent  is  responsible  for  another  criticism, 
which  reads  as  follows: 

We  are  treated  to  another  sample  of  Bryan  commercialism  just 
at  this  moment,  in  which  Mr.  Bryan  refuses  to  give  utterance  to 
his  opinions  on  the  Ohio  democratic  convention  platform  except 
through  THE  COMMONER  ;  hence  "buy  a  COMMONER  if  you  want  to 
know  what  I  think  of  McLean  and  his  crowd  of  Ohio  democrats/' 
It  is  only  5  cents,  but  it  counts  in  the  annual  income  of  the  re- 
doubtable commercialist. 

THE  COMMONER  is  not  copyrighted.  Any  newspaper  is  at  liberty 
to  reproduce  anything  which  appears  in  THE  COMMONER.  The 
paper  is  sent  out  so  as  to  reach  subscribers  on  Friday,  but  on  Thurs- 
day afternoon  advance  copies  of  the  paper  are  furnished  to  the 
Associated  Press  and  to  all  newspaper  men  desiring  copies.  In 
this  way  any  paper  in  the  United  States  can  give  its  readers  any- 
thing published  in  THE  COMMONER,  and  can  do  so  on  the  same  day 
that  THE  COMMONER  reaches  its  subscribers.  When  I  comment 
upon  some  event, of  special  importance  the  proof  is  given  to  the 
newspapers  at  an  earlier  date.  For  instance,  the  comments  on  the 
Supreme  Court  decision  were  given  on  Monday  afternoon,  four 
days  before  the  paper  reached  its  subscribers.  The  editorial  on  the 
Ohio  platform  was  given  to  the  newspapers  on  Monday  afternoon 
and  published  all  over  the  country  Tuesdav  morning,  three  days 
before  THE  COMMONER  reached  its  subscribers.  "NTowspaper  men 
have  criticised  me  for  giving  other  papers  a  "scoop,"  as  thev  call 
it,  on  my  own  paper,  but  I  have  no  objection  to  doing  this  when  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  209 

matter  discussed  is  of  importance.  It  is  only  mentioned  here  in 
answer  to  the  criticism  that  the  readers  of  the  Post  and  THE  COM- 
MONER may  know  how  partisan  and  malicious  some  republican 
politicians  are. 


A  WORD  TO  THE  DISAPPOINTED. 

In  accordance  with  a  call  issued  immediately  after  the  Ohio 
convention,  a  number  of  democrats  met  at  Columbus  last  week  and 
registered  a  protest  against  the  action  of  the  Ohio  democrats  in 
refusing  to  endorse  the  Kansas  City  platform.  A  platform  was 
adopted  and  a  ticket  headed  by  Dr.  Reemelin  of  Cincinnati,  was 
placed  in  the  field.  As  the  gentlemen  who  attended  this  meeting 
are  political  friends  and  supporters,  the  editor  of  THE  COMMONER 
feels  that  he  should  submit  some  observations  with  regard  to  the 
action  taken. 

They  have  ample  reason  to  feel  disappointed  at  the  course  pur- 
sued by  the  regular  convention.  If  it  had  been  necessary  to  fight 
the  campaign  entirely  on  state  issues,  no  reference  would  have 
been  made  to  national  questions.  The  fact  that  the  platform  de- 
voted more  space  to  national  than  to  local  subjects  was  proof  that 
the  excuse  given  for  a  refusal  to  endorse  the  Kansas  City  plat- 
form was  shallow  and  insincere.  The  fact  that  the  convention 
avoided  other  subjects  of  present  and  great  importance  showed  that 
the  silver  plank  was  not  the  only  plank  in  the  Kansas  City  plat- 
form which  was  objectionable  to  the  men  who  dominated  the 
resolutions  committee.  The  friends  of  the  Reemelin  ticket  can  be 
excused  for  entertaining  a  suspicion  that  the  men  who  objected  so 
strenuously  to  the  Kansas  City  platform  would  object  as  stren- 
uously to  any  definite  and  positive  political  remedy.  But  the 
question  which  confronts  the  loyal  democrats  of  Ohio  is  how  best 
to  correct  the  mistakes  made  by  the  convention  and  thus  rescue 
the  democratic  party  from  the  control  of  those  who  would  rc- 
publicanize  it.  The  fact  that  the  platform  contains  much  that 
is  good,  together  with  the  further  fact  that  the  candidates  nomi- 
nated, from  Mr.  Kilbourne  down  through  the  entire  list,  have 
been  supporters  of  the  party  ticket  in  recent  campaigns,  would 
make  it  impossible  to  organize  a  bolt  with  any  promise  of  success. 
The  first  effect  of  a  bolting  ticket  would  be,  therefore,  to  augment 
the  chances  of  republican  success  this  fall.  The  second  effect 


2io  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

would  be  to  lessen  the  influence  of  the  bolting  democrats  in  future 
party  contests.  It  is  not  fair  to  assume  that  the  convention  spoke 
for  the  rank  and  file  in  repudiating  the  Kansas  City  platform 
and  those  who  leave  the  party  at  this  time  weaken  the  reform 
element  of  the  party  and  give  to  the  gold  and  corporation  element 
greater  proportionate  influence  in  the  party  management. 

Whether  the  Ohio  democracy  is  to  take  its  position  on  the  Grover 
Cleveland  side  of  public  issues  is  a  question  yet  to  be  determined 
— a  question  to  be  determined  at  the  primaries  after  the  people 
understand  the  issues  presented.  To  leave  the  party  at  this  time 
is  to  assume  the  battle  lost  and,  by  assuming  it  lost,  help  the 
enemy.  When  the  fight  was  made  between  1895  and  1896,  we 
had  an  administration  to  fight  as  well  as  all  the  banks  and  rail- 
roads; now,  many  who  were  against  us  then  act  openly  with  the 
enemy  and  those  who  have  returned  after  a  temporary  sojourn  in 
the  camp  of  the  enemy  are  handicapped  by  the  record  they  have 
made. 

There  is  no  evidence  that  the  democratic  voters  in  Ohio  favor 
a  non-committal,  evasive  and  ambiguous  platform,  such  as  the 
democratic  party  promulgated  when  the  Wall  Street  influences 
were  in  control,  and  no  one  should  assume  the  existence  of  such 
sentiment  without  positive  proof. 

Let  the  democrats  of  Ohio  commend  the  good  parts  of  the  Ohio 
platform  and  condemn  the  weak  parts,  but  let  them  support  the 
ticket.  Then  they  should  begin  on  the  day  after  the  election  to 
so  organize  the  democratic  party  of  that  state  as  to  make  it  im- 
possible for  another  convention  to  give  as  much  encouragement 
to  the  republicans  as  the  last  convention  did. 


FAKE  INTERVIEWS. 

Just  now  the  republican  papers  and  those  so-called  democratic 
papers  which  spend  their  time  in  defending  republican  policies, 
are  publishing  fake  interviews  with  democrats,  populists  and  silver- 
republicans,  calculated  to  stir  up  dissensions  among  those  who  are 
opposing  the  administration. 

The  meanest  and  most  malicious  of  the  false  reports  recently 
put  into  circulation  was  the  statement  attributed  to  ex-Senator 
Towne  just  after  the  Ohio  convention.  In  this  purported  interview 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  211 

Mr.  Towne  was  made  to  predict  the  success  of  the  re-organizers, 
the  nomination  of  Mr.  Hill  and  the  breaking  up  of  the  democratic 
party.  All  of  the  gold  standard,  trust  and  imperialistic  papers 
seized  upon  this  as  a  sweet  morsel,  and  presented  it  as  conclusive 
proof  of  the  death  of  the  Kansas  City  platform. 

As  soon  as  this  falsehood  had  time  to  get  over  the  whole  country 
another  enterprising  prevaricator  came  forward  with  a  statement 
attributed  to  Mr.  J.  G.  Johnson,  the  Kansas  member  of  the  demo- 
cratic national  committee,  in  which  he  was  reported  as  saying  un- 
kind things  of  Mr.  Towne  and  Mr.  Webster  Davis.  The  editor 
of  THE  COMMONER  has  become  so  accustomed  to  misrepresenta- 
tion that  he  puts  no  faith  in  these  alleged  interviews,  but  he  re- 
fers to  them  for  the  benefit  of  readers  who  having  had  less  ex- 
perience in  the  political  methods  of  republican  and  gold  papers 
have  been  disturbed  by  them.  THE  COMMONER  is  authorized  to 
state  that  both  of  these  pretended  interviews  were  absolutely  false. 
Mr.  Towne  says  that  he  has  not  been  interviewed  on  politics  within 
three  months,  and  that  the  report  sent  out  from  New  York  was  "a 
pure  fake." 

Mr.  Johnson  is  equally  explicit  in  his  denial  of  the  interview  at- 
tributed to  him. 

The  democrats,  populists  and  silver  republicans  are  unfortunate 
in  that  they  have  so  few  democratic  dailies  of  large  circulation. 
There  seems  to  be  a  concerted  effort  on  the  part  of  the  republican 
and  gold  standard  papers  to  mislead  the  people  as  to  public  senti- 
ment, and  those  who  believe  in  democratic  principles  and  desire 
genuine  reform  must  rely  almost  wholly  upon  the  weekly  papers 
or  upon  the  smaller  dailies.  For  this  reason  it  is  the  more  impor- 
tant that  the  faithful  and  loyal  papers  should  receive  the  earnest 
and  cordial  support  of  the  democrats. 


A  MINISTER'S  LAMENT. 

The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  receives  many  letters,  so  many, 
in  fact,  that  he  finds  it  impossible  to  give  a  personal  reply 
to  all  of  them,  but  he  receives  much  information  from  these 
letters.  Some  of  them  furnish  texts  for  editorials,  and  these 
texts  are  utilized  whenever  possible.  He  has  recently  received  a 
letter  which  reflects  the  fear  that  many  entertain  that  the  nation 


212  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

has  already  gone  so  far  on  the  road  to  commercialism  that  its  course 
cannot  now  be  changed.  The  letter  was  written  by  a  minister,  and 
a  few  quotations  from  it  will  be  interesting.  "As  for  myself — an 
old  soldier  and  color  bearer  in  the  civil  war — I  feel  like  one  whose 
house  is  on  fire,  and  who  has  fought  the  flame  with  every  means 
at  command,  until  it  seems  evident  that  the  house  and  all  its  sacred 
store  is  doomed  to  destruction. 

"For  a  long  time  I  have  foreseen  the  impending  danger  and  have 
on  every  occasion  done  what  I  could  to  avert  it.  The  preliminary 
utterance  of  the  highest  court  is  now  public,  and  the  actual  dis- 
solution of  the  republic  is  begun,  and  as  I  estimate  the  case,  there 
is  no  human  power  that  can  resist  its  progress.  *  *  * 

"The  capitalistic  powers  of  this  country  and  of  the  world  are  in 
the  plot  and  they  have  found  a  party  that  faithfully  does  their 
bidding.  They  essentially  control  the  directing  forces  of  thought — 
the  press,  the  pulpit,  the  forum  and  the  market.  They  calculate 
that  they  can  buy  majorities  at  the  ballot-box — in  the  halls  of  legis- 
lation, in  the  judiciary,  everywhere — and  it  is  only  too  evident  that 
they  can.  They  can  bribe  or  send  an  ultimatum  with  the  army 
and  navy,  as  the  case  may  require,  to  achieve  their  ends ;  and  really 
there  is  no  possible  way  to  arouse  and  unify  the  people  for  a  suc- 
cessful resistance. 

"You  still  loyally  prefer  to  believe  in  the  people.  I  would  like 
to  do  so,  but  if  the  things  which  have  transpired  during  the  last 
four  years  will  not  awaken  the  people,  I  have  no  hope  that  they 
will  be  aroused  though  the  last  remnant  of  our  republican  institu- 
tions were  removed.  Absolutism  is  already  here,  and  unless  the 
Lord  of  Hosts  stretches  forth  His  hand  rebuking  and  bringing 
to  naught  the  devices  of  scheming  men,  this  government  of  the 
people,  by  the  people,  and  for  the  people  has  already  completed  its 
career  and  the  world's  hope  of  liberty  and  justice  is  blighted." 

He  then  proceeds  to  say  that  while  he  is  discouraged  as  to  the 
ultimate  outcome,  he  will  continue  to  do  what  he  can,  but  is  em- 
barrassed by  the  restraints  that  are  placed  upon  one  in  his  position. 

His  letter  suggests  two  questions :  first,  is  the  situation  hopeless  ? 
and,  second,  is  it  proper  for  a  minister  to  take  part  in  the  work 
that  must  be  done  ? 

The  case  is  not  hopeless.  No  one  who  has  observed  the  tendency 
of  republican  policies  can  deny  that  that  party  is  completely  under 
the  domination  of  organized  wealth.  It  sprang  into  existence  to 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  213 

combat  the  extension  of  slavery;  in  its  earlier  days  it  invoked  the 
name  and  principles  of  Jefferson;  it  quoted  the  declaration  of 
independence  in  its  early  platforms,  and  proclaimed  its  devotion 
to  human  rights.  Lincoln  was  the  typical  representative  of  the 
party.  Others  were  more  scholarly  and  more  rhetorical,  but  Lin- 
coln in  homely,  yet  eloquent  way,  gave  expression  to  the  moral 
sentiments  which  ran  through  the  party  creed.  He  condensed  the 
tenets  of  republican  faith  into  a  sentence  when  he  said  that  the 
republican  party  believed  in  the  man  and  the  dollar,  but  that  in 
case  of  conflict  it  believed  in  the  man  before  the  dollar. 

To-day  the  republican  party  openly,  notoriously,  and  shamelessly 
places  the  dollar  far  above  the  man.  It  is  establishing  in  society, 
in  politics  and  in  the  church  a  standard  whereby  money  is  made  to 
answer  all  things.  As  in  the  declining  days  of  the  Koman  Empire, 
men  are  measured,  not  by  what  they  are.  but  by  what  they  have, 
and  success — pecuniary  success — is  the  one  thing  sought  for.  When 
the  republican  party  legislates  on  the  subject  of  taxation  it  lays 
the  burden  upon  the  poor  and  allows  the  rich  to  escape  a  large 
portion  of  the  burden  which  they  ought  in  justice  to  bear.  When 
it  legislates  on  the  money  question  it  tries  to  make  the  dollar  dearer 
in  the  interest  of  the  money  changers  and  the  holders  of  fixed  in- 
vestments, and  it  tries  to  give  to  bankers  complete  control  over  the 
issue  of  paper  money.  When  it  legislates  on  the  trust  question — 
well  it  does  not  legislate  at  all,  it  simply  allows  private  monopolies 
to  do  whatever  they  please  and  then  draws  its  campaign  funds  from 
great  trusts  which  could  not  exist  if  the  party  did  its  duty  to  the 
people. 

When  it  legislates  on  the  subject  of  imperialism  it  tramples  upon 
the  most  sacred  traditions  of  the  nation,  and  violates  self-evident 
truths  in  the  hope  of  securing  rich  commercial  reward  by  the  sub- 
jugation of  distant  people.  It  does  not  hesitate  to  buy  every  one 
who  can  be  bought,  to  deceive  every  one  who  can  be  deceived,  and  to 
intimidate  every  one  who  can  be  intimidated.  Now,  this  is  the 
condition  which  has  been  developing  during  the  last  few  years, 
but,  bad  as  it  is  it  can  be  remedied.  The  democratic  party  has  tried 
to  remedy  it.  Prior  to  1896  Wall  Street  influences  had  secured  con- 
trol of  our  party  organization  and  had  made  it  impotent  to  accom- 
plish any  reforms.  As  soon  as  the  democratic  party  raised  the 
standard  of  real  democracy  in  1896,  it  inspired  hope  and  the  party 
ticket  polled  a  million  more  votes  than  had  ever  been  cast  for  a 


214  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

democratic  candidate  before.  Less  than  a  million  democrats  went 
over  to  the  enemy ;  less  than  twenty  per  cent  of  the  voting  strength 
of  the  party  deserted  and  gave  victory  to  the  republicans,  but  these 
deserters  became  responsible  for  what  has  happened  since.  Between 
1896  and  1900  the  republican  party  was  aided  by  the  natural  re- 
action from  the  panic  of  1893,  by  the  increased  production  of  gold, 
by  the  expenditure  of  money  in  the  prosecution  of  wars  on  three 
continents  and  by  the  enthusiasm  which  a  successful  war  usually 
arouses.  And  yet,  in  spite  of  these  facts  the  republican  candidate 
increased  his  vote  less  than  three  per  cent,  and  the  democratic  can- 
didate lost  less  than  three  per  cent,  of  his  vote.  What  would 
have  been  the  result  if  the  billion  dollar  steel  trust  had  been 
formed  before  the  election  instead  of  after?  Senator  Depew  said 
recently  that  it  might  have  changed  the  result  of  the  election. 
What  would  have  been  the  result  if  the  recent  supreme  court  de- 
cision had  been  rendered  during  the  campaign,  with  a  third  of  the 
republican  judges  dissenting  ?  During  the  campaign  the  republican 
party  denied  that  it  had  any  imperialistic  intentions  or  that  it  de- 
sired to  establish  militarism  in  the  United  States.  What  would 
have  been  the  result  if  it  had  openly  avowed  before  the  election  the 
purposes  which  it  has  disclosed  since  ? 

The  patriotism  of  the  people  has  been  sufficient  in  times  past, 
and  we  should  not  despair  even  now.  We  must  appeal  to  the 
conscience  of  the  people,  not  only  because  it  is  a  duty  to  do  so, 
but  because  we  have  reason  to  expect  a  response.  Eepublicans 
are  not  satisfied  with  the  record  which  their  party  is  making; 
they  have  voted  their  ticket  under  protest,  and  it  is  only  a  ques- 
tion of  time  when  this  protest  will  manifest  itself  in  revolt.  The 
acts  of  the  republican  party  have  belied  its  words,  and  its  betrayal 
of  all  that  is  high  and  holy  in  governmental  principles  must  sooner 
or  later  bring  defeat  to  its  leaders  and  redemption  to  the  country. 

But  what  of  the  duty  of  ministers? 

Ordinarily,  the  minister  does  not  feel  justified  in  taking  an 
active  part  in  politics.  His  congregation  is  usually  divided  and 
he  would  create  friction  in  his  church  by  entering  into  politics, 
and  yet  who  will  deny  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  minister  to  apply 
his  moral  principles  in  every  word  and  act?  Whenever  a  moral 
question — a  question  involving  right  and  wrong — arises,  the  in- 
fluence of  the  minister  must  be  cast  upon  the  right  side,  or  upon 
the  side  which,  after  careful  and  conscientious  investigation,  he 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  215 

thinks  right.  The  more  important  the  question,  the  more  im- 
perative is  it  that  the  influence  of  the  minister,  be  it  great  or 
small,  be  cast  on  the  right  side.  When  the  colonists  were  fight- 
ing against  taxation  without  representation,  the  ministers  were 
quick  to  add  their  voice  and  influence  to  the  side  of  the  revolution- 
ary patriots.  The  speech  of  one  has  been  preserved  in  poetry : 

When  God  is  with  our 'righteous  cause, 

His  holiest  temples  then  are  ours; 

His  churches  are  our  forts  and  towers, 
That  frown  upon  a  tyrant  foe. 

The  same  principle  is  involved  now.  It  is  difficult  to  understand 
how  a  layman,  or  even  a  non-christian,  can  fail  to  see  the  wrong- 
fulness  of  taxation  without  representation,  even  though  we  do  the 
taxing  and  the  Porto  Eicans  or  the  Filipinos  are  the  victims. 
How,  then,  can  a  minister  with  a  quickened  conscience  fail  to 
see  the  error  of  our  position?  It  is  surprising  that  any  one  can 
regard  stealing  from  others  as  less  reprehensible,  viewed  from  a 
moral  standpoint,  than  being  stolen  from.  And  yet  there  are 
ministers  who  defend  a  government  based  upon  force,  merely  be- 
cause we  administer  the  government  and  use  the  force  against 
others. 

But  imperialism  attacks  the  foundations  of  our  religion  as 
well  as  the  foundations  of  our  government ;  it  substitutes  arbitrary 
authority  for  persuasion  and  love.  It  makes  our  nation  an  ex- 
ponent of  the  doctrine  of  war,  conquest,  and  subjugation,  rather 
than  a  high  and  noble  example.  The  Christian  religion  rests  upon 
the  doctrine  of  human  brotherhood,  just  as  our  government  rests 
upon  the  kindred  doctrine  that  all  men  are  created  equal,  and  the 
two  doctrines  will  disappear  together  when  we  attempt  to  build 
a  republic  upon  the  bloody  foundation  upon  which  empires  rest. 

It  requires  moral  courage  and  often  sacrifice  to  do  one's  duty, 
and  yet  duty  cannot  be  shirked  with  impunity.  The  minister  be- 
lieves that  moral  principles  apply  to  nations  as  well  as  to  individ- 
uals, and  that  nations  cannot  violate  those  principles  with  im- 
punity. Ministers  believe  that  the  punishment  meted  out  to 
nations  is  more  terrible  than  the  punishment  meted  out  to  in- 
dividuals, because  the  sin  is  greater.  Let  them  beware,  then,  of 
giving  their  endorsement,  or  even  silent  acquiescence,  to  national 


216  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

wrong-doing.  No  one  can  assume  that  others  will  be  more  in- 
terested than  himself  in  the  triumph  of  right,  nor  ought  he  to 
assume  that  the  sacrifices  of  others  will  be  sufficient  to  save  him 
from  the  natural  results  of  his  own  indifference.  Every  one,  the 
minister  included,  is  in  duty  bound  to  give  to  his  country  the  bene- 
fit of  his  judgment  and  his  conscience. 


OPENING  A  RESERVATION. 

The  opening  of  the  Kiowa,  Comanche  and  Apache  reservations 
in  the  Indian  Territory  is  an  accomplished  fact  and  the  rush  for 
homesteads  is  over.  The  disappointed  land  seekers  now  have  time 
to  reflect  upon  the  situation  and  to  form  an  intelligent  judgment 
as  to  the  rules  governing  the  distribution  of  land.  In  the  first 
place,  the  administration  is  to  be  commended  for  substituting  the 
plan  of  drawing  by  lot  for  the  old  plan  which  made  all  applicants 
toe  the  line  and  then,  at  a  given  signal,  enter  into  a  mad  struggle 
to  see  who  could  reach  a  desirable  quarter  section  first.  It  is  much 
fairer  to  ascertain  how  many  want  to  locate  on  the  reservations 
and  then  allow  those  equally  entitled  to  land  to  draw  lots  for  posi- 
tions, than  to  make  the  selections  depend  upon  fleetness  of  foot  or 
physical  endurance. 

But  why  compel  applicants  to  go  all  the  way  to  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory to  file  a  claim?  Why  were  they  not  allowed  to  send  their 
claims  to  Washington  ?  This  would  have  given  every  one  an  equal 
chance.  As  it  was,  only  one  applicant  in  thirteen  could  secure  an 
allotment  and  yet  all  the  rest  (except  those  who  for  special  reasons 
were  allowed  to  file  their  claims  by  proxy)  were  compelled  to  incur 
the  expense  and  hardships  of  the  trip.  As  no  one  knew  in  advance 
how  many  claimants  there  would  be,  each  person  had  to  risk  a  con- 
siderable sum  without  knowing  what  chance  he  had  to  secure  a 
home.  Those  living  nearest  to  the  place  of  filing  had  the  best 
opportunity,  because  their  travelling  expenses  were  light,  and  in 
case  of  failure  to  secure  land  their  loss  was  least. 

It  was  next  to  impossible  for  any  one  to  go  from  a  remote  state. 
But  the  discrimination  was  even  greater  against  the  poor  man — the 
very  man  most  in  need  of  land.  It  would  have  been  difficult  enough 
for  a  person  of  small  means  to  have  mafle  the  trip  even  if  sure  of 
getting  land,  but  it  was  out  of  the  question  for  him  to  borrow  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  217 

money  when  he  had  only  a  chance  (it  turned  out  to  be  one  chance 
in  thirteen)  of  securing  land  after  he  got  there. 

The  railroads  have  profited  largely  by  the  plan  which  the  ad- 
ministration adopted,  because  they  collected  fares  both  ways  from 
disappointed  ones  and  still  have  another  chance  at  the  successful 
ones  when  they  return  to  make  permanent  settlements,  but  those 
desiring  to  locate  upon  the  reservation  have  been  put  to  much 
needless  expense  and  trouble. 


FUSION,  OPEN  AND  SECRET. 

In  the  last  campaign  the  republican  papers  denounced  demo- 
crats and  populists  for  co-operating  against  the  common  enemy. 
Both  parties  were  accused  of  sacrificing  principle  to  "get  office." 
The  subject  is  mentioned  at  this  time  because  D.  Clem  Deaver, 
a  Nebraska  politician  who  had  charge  of  the  middle-of-the-road 
populist  campaign  in  the  west,  has  recently  received  at  the  hands 
of  President  McKinley  a  substantial  reward  for  opposing  fusion. 
A  republican  by  the  name  of  Dickson  severely  criticised  Mr.  Beav- 
er's appointment  on  the  ground  that  Mr.  Deaver  was  not  a  re- 
publican. In  reply  Mr.  Deaver  gave  this  explanation  of  his  ap- 
pointment : 

"I  have  no  desire  personally  to  answer  the  strictures  of  Dr. 
Dickson,  but  as  a  matter  of  record  I  wish  to  say  that  my  appli- 
cation for  appointment  to  this  office  was  indorsed  by  Governor 
Dietrich  and  every  other  republican  state  officer,  also  by  E.  B. 
Schneider,  republican  national  committeeman,  and  the  leaders  of 
every  faction  of  the  republican  party  in  this  state. 

"Further,  upon  the  promotion  of  Governor  Dietrich  to  the 
senate,  he  took  up  my  ease  and  enlisted  the  support  of  Senator 
Millard,  who  had  never  met  me  prior  to  the  time  of  his  election, 
March  28. 

"In  view  of  the  fact,"  continued  Mr.  Deaver,  "that  the  party 
leaders  were  a  unit  in  supporting  my  application,  Senator  Mil- 
lard's  assent  was  cheerfully  given.  I  have  about  perfected  my 
bond  and  expect  to  assume  the  duties  of  the  office  August  1." 

During  the  last  presidential  campaign  Mr.  Deaver  went  up 
and  down  the  country  urging  the  populists  not  to  have  anything 
TO  do  with  the  democrats,  and  the  republican  newspapers  spoke  of 
Mr.  Deaver  as  a  populist  who  "stood  by  his  principles."  But  now 


218  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

all  the  republican  leaders  ask  for  and  secure  a  valuable  appoint- 
ment for  him.  This  proves,  if  indeed  proof  was  necessary,  that 
there  was  secret  fusion  between  the  republicans  and  the  middle- 
of-the-road  populists.  In  1896  the  republicans  and  gold  demo- 
crats denounced  fusion  between  democrats  and  populists,  and  yet 
when  the  election  was  over  prominent  democrats  like  Bynum  and 
Irish  applied  for  and  received  appointments  from  the  adminis- 
tration, showing  that  there  was  a  secret  understanding  between  the 
republicans  and  those  who  were  in  charge  of  the  Palmer  and  Buck- 
ner  movement. 

The  cry  "Down  with  fusion"  does  not  come  with  good  grace 
from  populists  and  gold  democrats  who  have  been  affiliating  with 
republicans.  With  even  poorer  grace  does  the  cry  come  from  re- 
publicans who  have  made  use  of  the  two  extremes,  gold  democrats 
on  the  one  hand  and  middle-of-the-road  populists  on  the  other. 

Honest  co-operation  between  the  reform  forces  is  natural  and 
necessary,  and  such  co-operation  will  be  advocated  by  those  who  are 
earnest  in  their  effort  to  overthrow  republican  policies.  Secret 
and  dishonest  co-operation  will  still  be  indulged  in  by  those  who 
denounce  fair  and  open  methods. 


THE  SILVER  REPUBLICANS. 

The  Silver  Republican  State  Committee  of  Nebraska  has  held 
its  last  meeting.  The  following  resolution  explains  the  action 
taken : 

While  we  steadfastly  adhere  'to  the  principles  for  the  main- 
tenance of  which  the  "silver  republican  party"  was  organized,  and 
are  proud  of  the  record  made  by  the  candidates  of  our  party, 
yet  believing  that  those  principles  can,  in  the  future,  be  best 
maintained  by  co-operation  with  the  other  organized  reform 
forces,  and  deeming  it  unwise  and  inexpedient  to  longer  continue 
our  party  organization  in  the  state  of  Nebraska  as  such,  therefore 
be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  organization  of  the  "silver  republican  party" 
in  Nebraska  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby  dissolved. 

The  Silver  Republicans  have  made  a  manly  and  honorable 
fisrht  for  their  principles.  They  left  the  republican  party  when 
the  money  question  was  the  paramount  issue;  they  selected 
a  name  which  distinguished  them  from  the  regular  republicans 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  219 

and  they  openly  co-operated  with  the  democratic  party.  The 
Silver  Republican  organization  did  not  resort  to  deception  as  the 
gold  democratic  organization  did,  nor  did  the  members  of  the  Silver 
Republican  organization  attempt  to  control  the  party  they  had  left. 
The  time  has  come  when  these  men  feel  that  they  can  accom- 
plish more  through  other  organizations  and  they  will  as  indi- 
viduals act  either  with  the  democrats  or  with  the  populists, 
according  as  personal  preference  or  local  conditions  may  deter- 
mine. They  are  honest  and  patriotic  men  and  believe  in  the 
principles  which  have  held  the  reform  forces  together.  They 
left  the  republican  party  because  of  their  convictions  and  they 
will  carry  their  convictions  with  them  when  they  enter  another 
party.  They  are  intelligent  men  and  will  be  valuable  members 
of  the  organization  to  which  they  attach  themselves.  Such  of 
them  as  choose  to  ally  themselves  with  the  democratic  party 
ought  to  receive  a  hearty  welcome,  for  by  leaving  the  republi- 
can party  to  support  the  democratic  ticket  they  have  shown 
themselves  better  democrats  than  those  who  left  the  democratic 
party  to  support  the  republican  ticket. 


WHY  NOT  TO  KRUGER? 

On  August  6  President  McKinley  sent  to  Emperor  William 
of  Germany  a  cablegram  expressing  regret  because  of  the  death 
of  the  Emperor's  mother.  Referring  to  this  good  woman,  Mr. 
McKinley  said:  "Her  noble  qualities  have  endeared  her  memory 
to  the  American  people  in  whose  name  and  in  mine,  I  tender 
to  your  Majesty  heartfelt  condolence." 

It  was  proper  that  Mr.  McKinley  should  express  sympathy 
with  the  German  Emperor  because  of  his  mother's  death.  But 
we  are  reminded  that,  although  Mrs.  Kruger,  the  wife  of  the 
President  of  the  South  African  Republic,  died  more  than  thirty 
days  ago,  the  President  of  the  United  States  has  not  seen  fit  to 
tender  his  sympathy,  or  the  sympathy  of  the  American  people, 
to  the  grief-stricken  President  of  a  republic  that  is  fighting  for 
existence. 

Let  us  ask  ourselves  seriously  why  this  very  apparent  duty 
has  been  neglected. 

It  cannot  be  that  Mr  McKinley  feared  to  express  his  sympathy 


22O  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

with  the  Republic's  President  on  the  ground  that  it  might  be 
construed  as  an  expression  of  preference  between  two  friendly 
powers  that  are  now  at  war.  It  happened  that  the  Queen  of 
England  died  while  this  war  was  in  progress  and  no  words  of 
eulogy  were  too  strong  for  our  President  to  convey  across  the 
water  by  way  of  assuring  the  English  people  that  we  sympa- 
thized with  them  in  their  great  loss. 

How  then  does  it  happen  that  although  the  President  of  a 
small  republic  is  staggering  under  the  greatest  load  that  can 
fall  upon  a  man  no  word  of  sympathy  has  reached  him  from  the 
President  of  the  greatest  republic  on  earth  ? 

How  does  it  happen  that  although  the  President  of  this  great 
republican  government  loses  no  time  in  expressing  sympathy  with 
kings  and  emperors,  that  he  utterly  ignores  the  opportunity  to 
express  sympathy  with  the  president  of  a  republic? 

It  is  true  that  the  mother  of  the  German  Emperor  possessed 
"noble  qualities."  These  did  "endear"  her  memory  to  the  Ameri- 
can people,  exactly  as  the  memory  of  any  good  woman  is  en- 
deared to  any  good  people.  But  the  wife  of  Paul  Kruger  pos- 
sessed "noble  qualities."  She  made  sacrifices  which  the  good 
mother  of  the  German  Emperor  was  never  called  upon  to  make. 
She  showed  heroic  devotion  to  her  husband  and  to  her  country 
which  the  good  mother  of  the  German  Emperor  never  had  an 
opportunity  to  display.  She  died  a  prisoner  of  war,  held  a 
prisoner  of  war  by  the  representatives  of  an  empire,  and  her 
life  was  sacrificed  because  of  her  devotion  to  the  principles  which 
in  the  past  we  have  been  fond  of  calling  "American  principles." 

And  yet  the  President  of  this  Republic  has  no  word  of  com- 
fort to  give  to  the  President  of  the  South  African  republic; 
he  has  no  word  of  consolation  to  offer  to  the  stricken  people  of 
the  South  African  republic ;  he  has  no  tribute  to  pay  to  the 
"noble  qualities"  of  one  of  the  most  heroic  figures  in  the  history 
of  the  world — for  the  wife  of  Paul  Kruger  was  an  heroic  figure. 

But  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  American  people,  regardless 
of  political  prejudice,  do  entertain  for  President  Kruger  the  most 
sincere  sympathy  in  the  hour  of  his  bereavement;  and  they  do 
entertain  for  the  memory  of  his  beloved  wife  that  high  and 
endearing  respect  which  is  due  from  a  people  who  have  lived 
and  profited  by  a  great  principle  to  any  man  or  woman  who  has 
suffered  and  died  because  of  devotion  to  that  same  principle. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  221 

Mr.  McKinley  missed  an  opportunity  when  he  permitted  the 
time  to  pass  away  without  giving  expression  to  American  sym- 
pathy for  the  bereaved  President  of  the  South  African  Eepublic. 

It  is  entirely  proper  that  we  should  have  tears  and  love  for 
the  stricken  people  of  a  monarchy;  but  should  we  not  also  have 
love  and  tears  for  the  stricken  people  of  a  republic? 


WHY  OSTRACIZE  THE  BEST? 

The  loyal  democrats  who  have  borne  the  burden  of  recent 
campaigns  and  who  have  made  pecuniary  sacrifice  to  support 
democratic  principles  ought  to  learn  something  of  the  meaning 
of  re-organization  by  running  over  the  list  of  suggested  presi- 
dential candidates.  Among  the  men  who  supported  the  demo, 
cratic  ticket  in  1896  and  in  1900  (not  because  of  party  regularity 
but  because  of  conviction)  were  some  of  the  best,  bravest  and 
truest  democrats  ever  known  and  yet  none  of  them  are  men- 
tioned in  connection  with  the  presidency.  The  re-organizers 
want  "harmony"  and  their  method  of  securing  it  is  to  place 
under  the  ban  all  who  believe  in  the  creed  of  the  party  as  promul- 
gated by  recent  national  conventions.  The  re-organizers  con- 
sider three  things  essential  to  "success/'  viz.,  first,  the  abandon- 
ment of  the  Kansas  City  platform;  second,  the  nomination  of 
candidates  who  do  not  believe  in  that  platform  and,  third,  the 
selection  of  a  national  committee  composed  of  men  who  either 
opposed  the  ticket  in  1896  or  gave  it  passive  support.  Why 
ostracise  the  best  men  in  the  party?  Why  place  a  premium  on 
disloyalty  ? 


222  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


XL 
INEXCUSABLE  MISREPRESENTATION. 

The  New  York  World  seems  to  love  darkness  rather  than 
light.  The  following  paragraph  states  what  the  World  has  ample 
reason  to  know  is  a  misrepresentation.  It  says: 

It  is  rather  a  pity  that  Mr.  Bryan  has  discouraged  the  threat- 
ened bolt  of  the  16  to  1  lunatics  in  Ohio.  It  would  have  been 
interesting  to  see  the  simon-pure  Chicago  and  Kansas  City  plat- 
form democrats  of  that  state  stand  up  to  be  counted  this  year 
on  a  bolt,  with  the  full  approval  of  their  "matchless  leader."  But 
Mr.  Bryan  is  too  shrewd  a  politician  to  give  the  sanction  of  his 
name  to  such  a  test.  He  is  now  a  great  stickler  for  regularity, 
though  he  supported  the  Weaver  electoral  ticket  in  1892,  and  in 
the  elections  of  the  three  following  years,  including  the  im- 
portant congressional  election  of  1894,  he  repudiated  the  sound- 
money  plank  of  the  national  democratic  platform  of  1892. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  the  Democratic  National  Com- 
mittee, acting  in  the  interests  of  Mr.  Cleveland,  advised  the 
democrats  of  several  western  states  to  vote  for  the  populist 
electors  in  order  to  take  the  states  out  of  the  republican  column, 
it  being  impossible  to  elect  the  democratic  ticket.  In  this  way 
Kansas,  Colorado,  Nevada  and  Idaho  were  taken  from  the  re- 
publicans and  the  republican  majority  in  Nebraska  reduced  to 
about  four  thousand  (it  gave  a  republican  majority  of  nearly 
thirty  thousand  in  1888).  A  man  ought  not  to  be  called  irregu- 
lar when  he  follows  the  instruction  of  the  national  committee. 
It  might  be  added  that  although  Mr.  Bryan  tried  to  help  Mr. 
Cleveland  in  1892,  Mr.  Cleveland  helped  the  republican  party 
in  1896,  while  Mr.  Weaver  supported  Mr.  Bryan. 

The  World  is  also  in  error  as  to  the  platform  of  1892.  It 
contained  the  following  plank:  "We  hold  to  the  use  of  both  gold 
and  silver  as  the  standard  money  of  the  country  and  to  the 
coinage  of  both  gold  and  silver  without  discrimination  against 
either  metal  or  charge  for  mintage/'  Some  qualifying  words 
were  added  for  use  in  the  eastern  states  but  the  above  declara- 
tion in  favor  of  the  double  standard  was  used  to  hold  the  demo- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  223 

crats  of  the  South  and  West  in  line.  The  principle  of  bimetal- 
lism was  repudiated  by  Mr.  Cleveland  and  his  cabinet  was  made 
up  of  gold  standard  advocates.  When  it  became  evident  that  the 
party  had  been  betrayed  by  its  leaders,  an  organization  was 
formed  within  the  party — not  to  repudiate  the  platform  of  1892, 
but  to  give  to  it  an  honest  interpretation.  The  platform  of 
1896  (the  silver  plank)  was  not  different  in  principle  from  the 
platform  of  1892,  but  was  free  from  ambiguity.  It  was  in  har- 
mony with  the  party's  record  in  Congress  until  Mr.  Cleveland 
used  the  patronage  of  iiis  high  office  to  force  through  a  republi- 
can measure — the  unconditional  repeal  bill,  and  even  then  he 
could  not  secure  a  majority  of  his  party  to  approve  of  his  veto 
of  the  Seigniorage  bill. 

The  financiers  wrote  the  platform  of  1892  to  deceive  the  people 
and  trusted  Mr.  Cleveland  to  betray  his  constituents.  In  1896 
the  party  clung  to  democratic  principles  and  repudiated  the  con- 
struction which  Mr.  Cleveland  had  placed  on  the  preceding  plat- 
form. These  facts  are  known  to  the  readers  of  the  World  and 
ought  to  be  to  the  editor. 


SENATOR  VEST'S  INTERVIEW. 

The  Kansas  City  Times  recently  published  an  interview  given 
out  by  Senator  Vest,  of  Missouri.  It  is  not  necessary  at  this 
time  to  answer  his  criticism  of  Mr.  Bryan's  part  in  the  ratification 
of  the  treaty.  The  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  are  familiar  with 
the  reasons  which  led  Mr.  Bryan  to  prefer  to  have  the  war  termi- 
nated and  the  independence  of  the  Philippines  secured  through  the 
action  of  this  country  rather  than  continue  the  war  and  risk  in- 
ternational complication  in  an  effort  to  compel  Spain  to  do  what 
we  could  more  easily  do  ourselves.  Neither  is  it  necessary  to  dis- 
cuss what  he  says  in  condemnation  of  "Mr.  Bryan's  leadership." 
Mr.  Bryan  makes  no  claim  to  leadership.  He  only  claims  the 
right  to  have  convictions  and  to  express  them;  if  other  people 
have  like  convictions,  he  will  have  company,  if  not,  he  will  be  alone. 

Some  one  has  defined  a  leader  as  "one  who  is  going  in  the  same 
direction  as  the  people  and  a  little  bit  ahead."  Mr.  Bryan  be- 
lieves in  the  principles  set  forth  in  the  Kansas  City  platform, 
and  is  not  willing  to  surrender  them  in  order  to  win  the  approval 


224  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  those  who  oppose  those  principles.  When  the  democratic  party 
repudiates  those  principles,  it  will  find  itself  going  in  another 
direction — with  Cleveland,,  Carlisle,  Whitney,  Francis,  et  al,  "a 
little  bit  ahead." 

Senator  Vest  outlines  a  platform  which  is  good  as  far  as  it 
goes.  He  says: 

"If  I  could  write  that  platform  without  the  intervention  of  any 
new  issue  I  would  declare: 

"First — For  a  graduated  income  tax,  .^vhich  is  the  fairest  and 
most  equal  system  of  taxation  ever  invented.  Our  present  system 
of  national  taxation  in  the  shape  of  internal  revenue  and  tariff 
duties  makes  the  poor  man  pay  the  expenses  of  the  government 
while  the  multi-mfllionaire,  who  consumes  neither  beer  nor  whisky, 
and  imports  nothing  from  Europe  except  clothing,  pays  nothing. 
But  in  the  event  of  war  the  poor  man  fights  for  the  millions  of 
dollars  belonging  to  the  plutocrat  which  is  now  exempt  from  taxa- 
tion. 

"Second — I  would  make  the  principal  issue  of  the  campaign 
of  190-i  stern  and  unyielding  opposition  to  the  trusts  and  syndi- 
cates which  are  now  crushing  out  individual  enterprise  of  the 
country.  Ten  years  ago  a  young  man  with  $15,000  or  $20,000 
capital  could  start  in  some  legitimate  business  with  fair  chance  of 
success,  but  now  he  has  no  more  chance  against  the  trusts  and 
department  stores  than  an  infant  against  the  champion  prize 
fighter  of  the  world.  I  was  told  recently  by  a  prominent  broker 
of  New  York  City — a  very  earnest  republican — that  nine  men  in 
New  York,  four  of  whom,  J.  Pierpont  Morgan,  George  Gould, 
John  D.  Rockefeller,  and  James  J.  Hill,  control  the  finances  of 
the  United  States,  and,  as  he  expressed  it,  no  one  could  go  into 
a  new  enterprise  or  remain  in  an  old  one  without  the  consent  of 
these  nine  men. 

"Third — I  would  declare  against  imperialism  and  the  colonial 
system,  for  while  this  issue  was  before  the  country  in  1900,  every- 
thing else  was  subordinated  to  the  fact  that  the  country  was  doing 
very  well  and  ought  to  be  left  alone.  If  the  people  of  the  United 
States  see  proper  to  indorse  the  foreign  policy  of  President  Mc- 
Kinley,  that  of  course  is  the  end  of  it,  but  no  democrat  should 
give  his  approval  to  the  colonial  system  of  Europe. 

"What  about  the  silver  question?"  was  asked. 

"As  to  the  free  coinage  of  silver,  I  have  always  been  an  earnest 
bimetallist  and  have  not  changed  my  opinions  in  the  slightest. 
I  do  not  believe  that  there  is  enough  gold  and  silver  in  the  world 
for  the  just  and  fair  transaction  of  business,  and  I  look  upon  the 
single  standard  of  either  gold  or  silver  as  doubling  the  power  of 
oppression  by  the  rich  at  the  expense  of  the  middle  and  poorer 
classes.  I  do  not  think  the  question  of  the  free,  coinage  of  silver 


The  Commoner  Condensed  225 

is  dead,  but  the  abnormal  and  unexpected  production  of  gold,  and 
especially  improvements  in  the  processes  of  extracting  gold  from 
the  earth,  have  given  us  more  money  in  this  country  than  any 
one  could  have  anticipated.  We  have  a  larger  per  capita  cir- 
culation than  any  other  country  in  the  world  except  France,  and 
there  is  no  immediate  prospect  of  any  decrease." 

"Do  you  think  that  bimetallism  will  ever  be  the  paramount 
issue  again  ?"  the  Senator  was  asked. 

"I  believe  that  the  time  will  again  come  when  bimetallism  will 
become  the  paramount  issue,  but  it  is  not  now  a  question  upon 
which  the  democratic  party  can  go  into  the  contest  in  1904,"  was 
the  reply.  "There  are  thousands  of  good  democrats  who  refused 
to  support  Mr.  Bryan  in  1896  and  1900,  because  they  did  not  be- 
lieve this  country  could  maintain  free  coinage  of  silver  at  the 
ratio  of  16  to  1  against  the  opposition  of  the  great  nations  of 
the  world.  It  seems  to  me  suicidal  for  us  to  thrust  this  issue  again 
upon  them,  when  they  are  anxious  to  come  back  to  the  party  on 
all  other  questions.  I  have  no  fear  that  the  gold  advocates  will 
take  possession  of  the  democratic  party,  but  I  do  fear  that  if  we 
continue  to  quarrel  over  silver  when  there  is  no  necessity  for  it, 
we  will  again  go  'through  a  slaughter  house  into  an  open  grave/ 

"The  democratic  party  must  come  together  on  some  honorable 
adjustment  of  the  money  question,  for  it  will  require  the  vote 
of  every  man  who  has  ever  been  a  democrat  to  defeat  the  republi- 
cans in  the  next  contest." 


The  income  tax  is  all  right,  but  it  would  be  easier  to  secure 
a  uniform  rate  than  a  graded  one. 

Mr.  Vest  will  find,  however,  that  the  income  tax  is  not  a  harmo- 
nizing issue. 

Mr.  Hill  fought  the  income  tax,  Mr.  Cleveland  was  opposed  to 
it,  and  nearly  all  the  gold  men  are  as  hostile  to  it  as  they  are 
to  free  silver. 

Mr.  Vest  emphasizes  the  trust  issue,  but  that  is  not  a  harmoniz- 
ing issue  either,  for  the  financial  influences  stand  behind  the 
trusts  as  solidly  as  they  do  behind  the  banks.  The  New  York  Sun 
is  already  declaring  that  free  silver  would  do  but  little  damage 
compared  with  the  widespread  demoralization  which  would  be  pro- 
duced by  effective  anti-trust  legislation. 

The  question  of  imperialism  is  rightly  included  among  the 
issues — in  fact,  its  importance  cannot  be  overstated.  Mr.  Vest 
is  right  in  saying  that  the  election  of  1900  cannot  be  considered 
a  settlement  of  the  question  of  imperialism,  but  why  does  Senator 
Vest  try  to  drive  away  the  allies  who  are  willing  to  help  us  to 


226  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

secure  all  needed  reforms?     Why  does  he  prefer  gold  democrats 
who  supported  the  republican  ticket  to  populists  who  supported 
the  democratic  ticket? 
He  says: 

"We  must  stop  hunting  around  in  corners  and  up  canons  for 
populist,  socialist  and  single  tax  votes  and  go  back  to  the  doctrine 
of  Mr.  Jefferson,  upon  which  alone  we  can  achieve  victory." 

The  Senator  should  be  a  little  more  definite.  To  what  planks 
does  he  refer?  The  only  plank  he  speaks  of  discarding  is  the 
silver  plank,  and  yet  that  is  not  nearly  so  populistic  as  the  in- 
come tax  plank.  The  Senator  was  voting  for  free  and  unlimited 
coinage  at  the  ratio  of  16  to  1,  without  waiting  for  the  aid  or 
consent  of  any  other  nation  before  the  populist  party  came  into 
existence.  The  income  tax  was  advocated  by  the  populist  party 
several  years  before  it  found  a  place  in  the  democratic  platform. 
In  fact,  a  graded  income  tax,  such  as  Senator  Vest  and  many 
populists  advocate,  never  has  been  endorsed  by  a  democratic  na- 
tional platform.  This  is  no  argument  against  the  proposition,  but 
it  shows  how  inconsistent  the  Senator  is  when  he  condemns  free 
silver  as  populistic  and  then  advocates  a  graded  income  tax. 

Senator  Vest  insists  that  he  is  still  a  bimetallist,  and  declares 
that  the  money  question  will  again  become  important,  but  he  is 
willing  to  abandon  it  temporarily  in  order  to  "harmonize"  with 
men  who  voted  the  republican  ticket  even  at  the  risk  of  destroying 
industrial  independence  and  converting  a  republic  into  an  em- 
pire. 

Senator  Vest's  platform  contains  no  reference  to  the  question 
of  paper  money.  The  republicans  and  gold  democrats  favor  na- 
tional bank  notes,  while  the  democrats  favor  greenbacks.  This 
question  is  entirely  separate  and  distinct  from  the  silver  question. 
Why  is  it  abandoned?  The  national  bankers  are  in  favor  of  a 
paper  money  trust  which  will  issue  and  control  the  paper  money 
of  the  country — the  most  dangerous  of  all  trusts;  is  the  Senator 
willing  to  wink  at  this  conspiracy  in  order  to  "harmonize"  with 
the  re-organizers?  If  we  are  to  go  back  to  Jeffersonian  doctrines 
what  is  more  Jefferponian  than  the  greenback?  Jefferson  was 
the  deadly  enemy  of  banks  of  issue,  and  yet  the  Senator's  plat- 
form is  silent  on  this  question. 

If  the  silver  question  is  going  to  be  important  again,  why  turn 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  227 

the  party  over  to  the  re-organizers  and  allow  them  to  aid  the 
republicans  in  making  the  silver  dollar  redeemable  in  gold? 

The  Senator  is  anxious  to  secure  "harmony"  but  he  will  find 
that  there  can  be  no  harmony  without  the  surrender  of  every  es- 
sential principle  of  democracy.  The  men  who  voted  the  republi- 
can ticket  on  account  of  the  silver  plank  are  as  a  rule  opposed  to 
the  income  tax,  and  are  also  opposed  to  any  effective  anti-trust 
legislation.  They  are  in  favor  of  national  banks  of  issue,  and 
are  also  in  favor  of  government  by  injunction  (a  subject  which 
Senator  Vest  did  not  mention  in  his  proposed  platform).  Even 
on  imperialism  many  of  the  gold  democrats  have  no  fixed  or  defi- 
nite convictions.  In  fact,  the  only  way  to  harmonize  with  the 
re-organizers  is  to  allow  them  to  control  the  organization  and 
write  a  republican  platform.  How  much  is  Senator  Vest  willing 
to  give  up  in  order  to  bring  the  gold  corporation  element  back? 
His  platform  is  entirely  too  populistic  to  entice  the  deserters  into 
the  fold.  Perhaps  they  might  allow  him  to  write  the  platform 
if  they  are  permitted  to  select  a  candidate  who  will  disregard  the 
platform  as  Mr.  Cleveland  did. 


CHILDREN  NOT  BURDENSOME. 

Alderman  Wentz  and  Mrs.  Wentz  of  Brooklyn,  have  given  their 
names  to  fame  and  have  set  an  admirable  example  to  those  people 
who  are  inclined  to  regard  children  as  burdens. 

Alderman  and  Mrs.  Wentz  are  the  parents  of  seventeen  children. 
It  was  like  the  leaving  of  an  emigrant  train  when  the  Wentz 
family  went  on  a  trip  to  the  Buffalo  fair,  and  the  newspaper  re- 
porters were  attracted  to  the  spectacle.  The  reporters  appeared 
to  be  surprised  that  this  father  and  mother  were  really  enjoying 
life  while  at  the  same  time  having  the  responsibility  for  seventeen 
children.  But  some  of  the  things  that  the  alderman  said  are  worthy 
of  preservation.  Among  other  things  Mr.  Wentz  said : 

"It's  a  great  thing  to  go  home  at  night  and  find  nineteen  or 
twenty  pairs  of  shoes  waiting  in  the  hallway  to  be  cleaned. 
You  can't  come  home  feeling  lively  with  the  danger  of  waking 
up  twenty-three  people. 

"I  think  if  people  knew  the  satisfaction  of  having  babies 
about  the  house"  they  would  not  want  small  families.  I  don't 


228  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

feel  old  as  the  little  ones  multiply.     I  feel  younger  and  younger, 
and  think  I'll  become  a  child  again  myself  some  day." 

And  when  Mrs.  Wentz  was  approached  for  an  opinion  as  to 
her  manifold  responsibilities,  that  good  woman  had  this  to  say: 

"It's  a  great  time  getting  the  children  off  to  school.  I  line 
them  up  like  an  inspector  of  rifle  practice. 

"I  don't  think  our  family  could  get  along  on  one  of  those 
dollar  dinners  provided  for  in  the  evening  papers. 

"We  let  the  babies  have  lots  of  fresh  air,  and  when  they  come 
in  at  evening  they  are  anxious  to  go  to  bed.  Every  one  helps 
here  or  it  would  be  a  task  beyond  my  powers. 

"I'm  very  happy  with  the  little  ones  about.  The  work  doesn't 
seem  to  tire  me.  I  love  every  one  of  them  and  they  love  me, 
and  there  is  something  in  that. 

"We  don't  spoil  our  children  by  pampering.  We  expect  them 
to  be  little  men  and  women,  and  they  are.  They  are  placed  upon 
their  honor  to  behave,  and  they  do  so  without  much  rod." 

The  large  family  is  not  common  in  this  country  to-day.  It 
has  come  to  be  the  exception,  although  it  is  true  that  nowhere 
do  general  content  and  happiness  appear  to  rest  more  securely 
than  in  the  centers  of  these  large  families.  A  few  years  ago 
the  large  family  was  not  the  exception.  Fifty  years  ago,  the 
sight  of  a  family  of  seventeen  children  would  not  have  provoked 
extraordinary  comment,  while  that  of  twelve  or  thirteen  children 
would  hardly  have  attracted  attention. 

It  is  worthy  of  comment  that  one  may  find  more  nervousness, 
more  care,  more  anxiety  and  more  weariness  in  the  home  graced 
by  a  single  child,  than  in  the  household  to  which  a  large  num- 
ber of  children  have  come.  Where  poverty  does  not  prevail  in 
such  a  home,  happiness,  contentment  and  health  are  generally 
noticeable. 

In  the  city  of  South  Omaha,  Nebraska,  lives  one  of  the  best 
physicians  in  the  west.  There  are  in  his  home  thirteen  children. 
The  mother  would  readily  pass  for  a  woman  of  twenty-eight  or 
thirty,  while  the  father  would  not  be  suspected  of  being  far 
above  the  age  of  thirty-five.  This  home  is  famous,  not  only  for 
its  hospitality  to  the  stranger,  but  for  the  peace,  love,  content- 
ment and  happiness  that  abound  in  its  everv-day  life.  The  father 
and  mother  are  among  the  most  jovial  and  companionable  people 
of  the  city  and  although  the  professional  cares  of  the  father  and 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  229 

the  household  duties  of  the  mother  are  large,  they  both  find  some 
time  to  devote  to  the  social  pastimes  of  their  neighborhood. 

If  it  was  desired  to  establish  the  claim  that  children  are  bur- 
densome, neither  this  South  Omaha  family,  nor  the  Wentz  family 
of  Brooklyn,  nor  any  other  family  that  may  properly  claim  a 
place  in  the  list  of  large  ones,  could  be  used  as  witnesses  in  the 
affirmative. 


EMASCULATING  DEMOCRACY. 

In  real  Democracy  there  is  throbbing,  ever-present  life.  There 
is  nothing  more  vigorous  and  virile  than  Democracy  when  it 
stands  for  the  rule  of  the  people — the  right  of  the  people  to 
control  their  own  government  and  the  capacity  of  the  people  for 
self-government.  Democracy  in  an  open  fight  need  not  fear  either 
aristocracy — the  rule  of  the  best  (as  the  few  style  themselves) 
or  plutocracy,  the  rule  of  the  rich.  In  an  honest  fight  Democracy 
can  rely  with  confidence  upon  the  righteousness  of  its  cause  and 
trust  the  conscience  and  intelligence  of  the  people.  Victory  may 
be  delayed,  but  it  cannot  be  prevented  if  the  democratic  party 
remains  steadfast  in  its  support  of  Democratic  principles.  The 
greatest  danger  which  confronts  Democracy  to-day  is  that  it  will 
be  emasculated  and  robbed  of  its  force  and  vitality  by  those  who 
cling  to  the  Democratic  name  but  constantly  give  aid  and  comfort 
to  the  republican  party.  For  the  purpose  of  illustration  three 
daily  papers  may  be  mentioned.  They  loudly  proclaim  their 
loyalty  to  Democratic  principles  and  roundly  condemn  those  who 
were  responsible  for  the  Chicago  platform.  They  deserted  the 
party  in  1896  and  supported  the  Palmer  and  Buckner  ticket — a 
ticket  that  polled  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  thousand  votes, 
all  told,  and  carried  one  precinct  in  the  United  States.  They  gave 
a  protesting  support  to  the  national  ticket  in  1900  and  ever  since 
the  election  have  been  industriously  at  work  "re-organizing"  the 
democratic  party.  The  papers  referred  to  are  the  New  York 
World,  the  Louisville  Courier- Journal  and  the  Chicago  Chronicle. 
Each  paper  is  the  best  representative  of  its  class  in  the  section  in 
which  it  circulates. 

On  the  money  question  all  three  support  the  republican  posi- 
tion; they  are  mouth  pieces  of  the  great  financiers;  they  breathe 
the  poisoned  air  that  has  passed  through  the  lungs  of  Wall  Street. 


230  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

No  financial  policy  is  too  cruel,  no  dollar  too  dear,  no  mouev 
pystem  too  despotic  for  them  to  endorse;  provided,  always,  it 
has  the  endorsement  of  the  money  changers.  They  not  only  want 
to  make  gold  the  only  standard  money,  but  they  want  to  retire 
the  greenbacks  and  substitute  national  bank  notes.  They  often 
prate  of  their  love  of  Jefferson,  and  yet  they  know  that  Jefferson  was 
always  and  at  all  times  the  enemy  of  banks  of  issue.  They  con- 
jure with  the  name  of  Jackson,  and  yet  Jackson  made  his  greatest 
reputation  fighting  a  bank  of  issue.  If  these  papers  had  their 
way  the  democratic  party  would  disregard  entirely  the  interests 
which  the  masses  have  in  a  stable  dollar,  and  would  make  the 
party  the  exponent  of  those  whom  Carlisle  once  described  as  the 
"idle  holders  of  idle  capital." 

On  the  question  of  imperialism  these  papers  do  not  entirely 
agree.  The  World  still  condemns  an  imperial  policy,  while  the 
Courier- Journal  and  the  Chronicle  advocate  a  surrender  to  the 
republicans  on  this  issue. 

The  Courier- Journal  admits  that  the  democratic  position  is 
the  correct  one  so  far  as  principles  are  concerned,  but  contends 
that  commercialism  is  bound  to  win  and  that  the  democratic 
party  should  "get  into  the  band  wagon."  It  preaches  the  gospel 
of  expediency — a  doctrine  which  demoralizes  the  party  by  mak- 
ing everything  subordinate  to  the  desire  to  win  a  temporary  suc- 
cess. 

The  Chronicle  goes  a  little  farther  and  declares  that  the  demo- 
cratic party  would  not  carry  out  the  promise  made  last  fall,  even 
if  it  could.  The  following  is  from  a  recent  editorial  in  that 
paper : 

There  will  be  no  revolution  in  American  politics  which  will 
result  in  conferring  independence  on  the  people  cf  the  Philippines. 
If  the  democrats  should  carry  the  next  presidential  election,  and 
should  elect  a  majority  in  both  houses  of  congress,  the  Philip- 
pines would  not  be  abandoned.  They  are  with  us  for  good  or  for 
evil,  as  time  shall  determine,  and  it  is  mostly  for  them  to  say 
whether  it  shall  be  for  their  good. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  democratic  national  convention 
of  1900,  without  a  dissenting  vote,  and  amid  unparalleled  en- 
thusiasm, declared  it  to  be  the  duty  of  this  nation  to  immediately 
announce  its  purpose :  First,  "to  establish  a  stable  government  in 
the  Philippines;  second,  to  turn  that  government  over  to  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  231 

Filipinos  and  give  them  independence,,  and  third,  to  protect  the 
Filipinos  from  outside  interference,  as  we  have  protected  the  re- 
publics of  Central  and  South  America.  There  was  difference  of 
opinion  as  to  the  wording  of  the  money  plank,  but  none  as  to  the 
party's  position  on  imperialism.  And,  yet,  the  Courier- Journal 
and  the  Chronicle  are  willing  to  give  up  the  defense  of  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence  and  accept  the  republican  theory  of  gov- 
ernment— a  theory  identical  witk  that  announced  by  George  the 
Third. 

On  the  trust  question,  no  two  of  the  three  papers  agree.  The 
World  is  very  much  afraid  of  the  trusts,  but  does  not  know  what 
to  do  about  them;  the  Courier- Journal  does  not  know  whether  it 
is  afraid  or  not,  and  the  Chronicle  isn't  worried  at  all,  but  all 
three  of  the  papers  lose  no  opportunity  to  misrepresent  and  malign 
those  who  are  in  earnest  in  their  efforts  to  destroy  private  monopo- 
lies. 

The  papers  above  mentioned  illustrate  the  confusion,  conflict  and 
uncertainty  that  prevail  among  those  who  oppose  the  Kansas  City 
platform.  If  a  convention  were  called  of  the  daily  papers  which 
want  to  repudiate  the  Kansas  City  platform,  and  their  editors 
were  required  to  submit  a  new  platform  satisfactory  to  all  of  them 
they  would  adjourn  sine  die  before  they  agreed  upon  a  single 
important  plank.  They  represent  all  shades  of  opinion  on  every 
question,  and  are  harmonious  about  nothing  except  their  contempt 
for  the  patriotism  and  intelligence  of  the  more  than  six  million 
voters  who  in  spite  of  corruption  and  coercion  supported  the  party 
in  two  national  campaigns.  The  Kansas  City  platform  is  a  posi- 
tive, clear  and  emphatic  application  of  Democratic  principles  to 
present  conditions.  When  a  person  stands  upon  that  platform 
and  gives  it  his  unqualified  endorsement  the  people  know  what 
to  expect  of  him. 

The  opponents  of  that  platform,  however,  quarrel  and  contend 
over  every  proposition  submitted.  Some  want  the  party  to  de- 
clare boldly  for  the  gold  standard ;  others  favor  a  cowardly  evasion 
of  the  whole  question.  Some  want  the  party  to  declare  openly  in 
favor  of  banks  of  issue;  others  want  the  party  to  keep  still  on 
the  question  in  its  platform,  but  to  lend  the  party's  influence 
after  election  to  the  retirement  of  the  greenbacks. 

Some  want  the  party  to  continue  the  fight  against  imperialism ; 
some  want  the  party  to  quit  opposing  imperialism  and  acquiesce 


232  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

in  it  without  endorsing  it,  while  others  think  that  the  party 
should  have  the  courage  to  commend  the  administration's  course. 
Some  think  that  all  trusts  are  bad;  some  think  that  a  part  of 
the  trusts  are  good  and  a  part  of  them  had,  and  still  others  believe 
that  the  trust  is  an  economic  development  that  is  entirely  benefi- 
cent in  its  operations. 

The  difference  of  opinion  which  manifests  itself  in  the  dis- 
cussion of  the  larger  questions  is  no  less  conspicuous  in  the  dis- 
cussion of  minor  questions.  Because  they  can  agree  upon  no  plat- 
form the  re-organizers  content  themselves  with  criticising  Demo- 
cratic principles  and  republican  individuals. 

Is  it  strange  that  the  democratic  party  has  made  slow  progress 
when  it  is  remembered  that  for  five  years  the  leading  dailies,  which 
claim  to  be  Democratic,  have  given  more  assistance  to  the  op- 
position than  to  their  own  party?  Between  campaigns  they  have 
been  condemning  the  platform  of  the  party  and  discrediting  those 
who  endorsed  the  platform;  it  is  impossible  for  such  papers  to 
repair  during  the  campaign  the  damage  which 'they  do  between 
campaigns.  But  for  the  weekly  papers  which  have  for  the  most 
part  remained  loyal,  the  Democratic  voters  would  have  had  little 
opportunity  to  read  Democratic  literature.  The  republicans,  on 
the  contrary,  have  all  their  daily  papers,  all  their  weekly  papers 
and  a  considerable  portion  of  the  so-called  Democratic  dailies 
continuously  explaining  and  in  whole  or  in  part  defending  the 
course  of  the  administration.  The  only  wonder  is  that  the  rank 
and  file  of  the  party  should  have  shown  itself  as  steadfast  as  it 
has.  If  those  who  call  themselves  democrats  will  defend  the 
Democratic  platform  for  the  next  three  years,  we  can  win  in  1904; 
but  it  is  difficult  to  win  when  a  numerically  small  but  financially 
influential  portion  of  the  party  is  constantly  compromising  with 
the  republicans. 


MONEY  PROBLEM  IN  PHILIPPINES. 

In  his  annual  report  recently  made  public,  General  MacArthur 
recommends  for  the  Philippine  Islands  a  monetary  system  de- 
scribed as  follows: 

First — The    American    gold    standard    to    be    established    by 
authorizing  the  coinage  of  a  peso  containing  twelve  and  nine- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  233 

tenths  grains,  nine-tenths  fine,  to  be  represented  in  the  circulation 
by  coins  containing  such  multiple  of  the  standard  peso  as  may 
be  regarded  as  most  convenient  of  mintage. 

Second — A  table  of  equivalents,  to  be  declared  by  law,  be- 
tween Philippine  gold  money  and  United  States  money  in  all 
its  various  forms,  including  national  bank  notes,  on  the  basis 
of  2  to  1 ;  that  is  to  say,  one  United  States  gold  is  equivalent  to 
two  Philippine  gold  pesos,  as  herein  prescribed. 

Third — A  subsidiary  Philippine  coinage,  embracing  such  sub- 
divisions of  the  peso  as  are  most  convenient,  conforming  as  much 
as  possible  to  the  subsidiary  coin  of  the  United  States,  and  with  an 
established  rate  of  equivalents  as  in  the  case  of  gold;  that  is  to 
say,  one  United  States  coin  is  equivalent  to  two  Philippine  coins 
of  the  same  denomination. 

Fourth — The  establishment  of  Filipino  national  banks,  pre- 
cisely the  same  in  all  respects  as  now  authorized  in  the  United 
States,  including  United  States  bonds  as  a  basis  of  circulation. 

Fifth — All  currency  issued  under  the  foregoing  systems  to 
have  full  legal  tender  function  in  the  Philippine  Islands  for  all 
public  duties  and  private  debts;  and  the  equivalent  United  States 
currency  and  subsidiary  coinage,  as  authorized  in  the  foregoing 
section  2  and  3,  to  have  legal  tender  qualities  in  the  Philippines 
to  the  same  extent  and  precisely  the  same  as  in  the  United  States." 


MR.  KNOX  AND  HIS  SECRETS. 

The  American  Anti-Trust  League  has  sent  to  Attorney  General 
Knox  the  following  letter: 

SIR:  We  have  the  honor  to  request  that  you  afford  us  all  the 
information  that  you  are  possessed  of  or  can  obtain  concerning 
an  agreement  or  agreements  made  between  the  constituent  com- 
panies and  individuals  who  organized  the  United  States  Steel 
corporation,  commonly  known  as  the  steel  trust. 

The  trust  or  syndicate  agreement  which  we  especially  desire 
is  the  one  which  President  C.  M.  Schwab  of  the  United  States 
Steel  corporation  refused  to  furnish  to  the  United  States  industrial 
commission  when  on  the  witness  stand  before  that  body. 

Our  request  is  founded  upon  information  and  belief  that  at 
the  time  that  this  contract,  or  those  contracts,  was,  or  were,  made 
you  were  in  some  way  officially  connected  with  the  Carnegie  Steei 
company,  which  institution  is  one  of  the  principal  companies  in 
the  United  States  Steel  corporation.  As  this  information  is  doubt- 
less in  your  possession  or  conveniently  at  hand,  you  will  greatly 
oblige  this  committee  by  giving  us  the  substance  thereof  in  your 
own  language,  or,  if  possible,  a  copy  thereof. 


234  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

This  request  is  to  cover  any  other  contracts  of  a  similar  kind 
with  which  you  are  acquainted  or  which  you  can  obtain  for  us. 
Our  object  is  to  prevent  the  failure  of  justice  in  certain  legal 
proceedings  which  we  contemplate  in  the  near  future. 

It  is  not  at  all  probable  that  the  Attorney  General  will  comply 
with  this  request.  He  will  have  good  professional  grounds  for 
refusing  to  comply  with  it  because  he  may  say  that  whatever  in- 
formation he  possesses  concerning  the  trust  was  obtained  in  the 
capacity  of  attorney  for  the  trust,  and  therefore  it  would  be 
impossible  for  him  to  reveal  his  secret. 

This  emphasizes  the  iniquity  of  selecting  a  trust  attorney  for 
an  office  upon  which  rests  the  responsibility  for  enforcing  laws 
against  trusts.  The  Attorney  General  should  be  entirely  free  to 
act  in  the  prosecution  of  violators  of  the  anti-trust  law.  But 
would  it  be  possible  for  even  the  warmest  friend  of  Mr.  Knox  to 
say  that  he  is. in  a  position  to  discharge  his  duty  as  the  attorney 
for  the  United  States,  when  that  duty  conflicts  with  the  interests 
of  the  trust?  Here  we  have  the  attorney  for  one  client  who  has 
in  his  possession  the  secrets  of  his  client's  opponent.  Those  secrets 
are  sufficient  to  enable  that  client's  lawyer  to  crush  that  client's 
opponent.  Yet  the  lawyer  is  unable  to  take  advantage  of  those 
secrets  because  of  the  fact  that  he  obtained  them  in  the  capacity 
of  an  attorney.  It  would  be  very  difficult  for  Mr.  Knox  to  draw 
the  line  between  the  secrets  he  obtained  in  a  confidential  capacity 
while  acting  as  attorney  for  the  trusts  and  the  tecrets  of  the  trust 
which  he  obtains  through  vigorous  investigations  vrhile  acting 
as  attorney  for  the  United  States. 

Aside  from  the  fact  that  Mr.  Knox's  sympathies  are  naturally 
with  the  trust  system,  he  is  greatly  handicapped  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duty  toward  the  United  States  by  reason  of  the  fact  that 
everything  which  the  United  States  Attorney  General  should  know 
in  his  fight  against  the  trust  Mr.  Knox  knows  and  obtained  in  a 
confidential  way.  Is  there  an  individual  in  the  United  States 
who  would  care  to  employ  as  his  attorney  a  man  who  had  acted 
as  attorney  for  an  opponent  and  aided  that  opponent  in  devising 
methods  whereby  this  individual  could  be  wronged? 

It  is  impossible  that  Mr.  Knox,  having  served  as  attorney  for 
the  trust  in  paving  the  way  for  the  violation  of  the  very  laws 
which  he  is  now  called  upon  to  enforce,  should  enforce  those  laws 
as  the  interests  of  the  United  States  require. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  235 

Mr.  Knox  is  a  great  lawyer,  otherwise  the  trusts  would  not 
have  employed  him.  But  there  are  many  other  great  lawyers  in 
the  United  States  to-day.  The  republican  party  is  full  of  great 
lawyers,  and  among  them  are  many  men  who  could  be  depended 
upon  to  exercise  the  ability  and  fidelity  essential  to  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  anti-trust  law.  Why  did  not  the  McKinley  adminis- 
tration select  as  its  Attorney  General  one  of  this  number?  Why 
did  it  choose  as  Attorney  General  the  most  conspicuous  trust 
lawyer  in  the  United  States? 


TKICKEEY  OF  WORDS. 

The  Chicago  Chronicle  warns  "democrats  in  and  out  of  con- 
ventions" that  "sonorous  declarations  against  'imperialism'  and 
'colonialism'  will  not  do."  The  Chronicle  adds  that  "something 
more  than  mere  declamation  is  needed.  If  democrats  are  opposed 
to  imperialism,  what  do  they  propose  to  give  the  people  in  its 
place?" 

Then  the  Chronicle  complains  that  the  Ohio  platform,  because 
of  its  indefmiteness  on  this  subject  is  lamentably  weak.  It  insists 
that  this  question  must  be  met  "intelligently,  courageously  and 
entirely  free  from  demagogy  and  mere  trickery  of  words."  This 
is  good  advice;  but  if  the  advice  be  sound  on  the  question  of  im- 
perialism why  is  not  similar  advice  sound  on  the  money  question  ? 

The  opponents  of  bimetallism  would  have  the  democratic  con- 
ventions indulge  in  "sonorous  declarations."  But  the  advocates 
of  bimetallism  have  said  that  "something  more  than  mere  declama- 
tion is  needed."  They  have  held  that  if  democrats  have  any 
opinion  on  the  money  question,  they  should  state  that  opinion 
"intelligently,  courageously,  and  entirely  free  from  demagogy 
and  mere  trickery  of  words." 

But  to-day  the  men  for  whom  the  Chicago  Chronicle  stands 
sponsor,  while  objecting  to  bimetallism  and  protesting  against 
the  definiteness  with  which  democratic  conventions  have  declared 
their  position  on  the  money  question,  insist  upon  a  money  plank 
composed  of  "sonorous  declarations." 

Why  do  not  these  gentlemen  give  the  people  "something  more 
than  declamation"?  If  the  single  gold  standard  is  right,  why  do 


236  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

they  not  abandon  the  "trickery  of  words"  and  boldly  announce  to 
the  people  their  preference  for  the  single  gold  standard? 

Why  does  the  Chicago  Chronicle  insist  upon  clearness  and  di- 
rectness of  statement  so  far  as  concerns  the  question  of  im- 
perialism while  it  has  no  protest  to  make  against  a  "trickery  of 
words"  in  the  democratic  platforms  on  the  money  question? 

What  the  Chronicle  says  on  the  form  of  the  plank  relating  to 
imperialism,  the  bimetallists  in  the  democratic  party  have  said 
on  the  form  of  the  plank  relating  to  the  money  question :  "Some- 
thing more  than  mere  declamation  is  needed.  If  democrats  are 
opposed  to  bimetallism,  what  do  they  propose  to  give  the  people 
in  its  place?" 

If  the  men  who  seek  to  re-organize  the  democratic  party  are 
opposed  to  bimetallism,  what  do  they  propose  to  give  the  people 
in  its  place  ?  Do  they  propose  to  give  them  the  single  gold  stand- 
ard? If  so,  why  not  say  so  "intelligently,  courageously  and  en- 
tirely free  from  demagogy  and  mere  trickery  of  'words." 


ME.  LITTLEFIELD'S  ADDEBSS. 

On  another  page  THE  COMMONER  reproduces  the  address  de- 
livered by  Congressman  Charles  E.  Littlefield,  of  Maine,  before 
the  American  Bar  Association  at  Denver.  Mr.  Littlefield  criti- 
cised the  Supreme  Court's  insular  decisions,  and  declared  those  de- 
cisions to  be  "without  a  parallel  in  our  judiciary  history."  While 
disclaiming  any  disposition  to  reflect  upon  the  court,  Mr.  Little- 
field  said:  "I  feel  bound  to  say  it  seems  to  me  that  they  were 
profoundly  impressed  with  the  supposed  consequences  of  an  ad- 
verse decision."  One  lawyer  protested  against  Mr.  Littlefield's 
discourse  in  the  presence  of  the  American  Bar  Association.  That 
gentleman,  Mr.  Adolph  Moses,  said: 

I  wish  to  record  my  note  of  dissent  to  the  general  applause 
which  followed  the  presentation  of  the  insular  cases  by  Mr.  Little- 
field.  I  regret  to  have  listened  to  what  I  consider  an  unwarranted 
attack  upon  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States,  and,  as  a 
member  of  this  association,  I  wish  to  raise  my  voice  in  protest 
against  the  use  of  this  platform  for  a  purpose  of  this  kind. 

The  notion  that  men  who  occupy  the  bench  are  exempt  from 
criticism  will  not  do  under  a  republican  form  of  government. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  237 

To  say  that  any  opinion  delivered  by  a  man  on  the  bench  must 
seem  to  command  respect  and  approval,  although  in  fact  it  does 
not  command  either,  is  to  say  that  men  in  official  position  can  do 
no  wrong;  and  the  people  of  the  United  States  know  that  men 
in  official  position  are  always  liable  to  err. 

Mr.  Littlefield's  opinion  of  the  insular  decisions  is  the  opinion 
of  a  large  majority  of  the  lawyers  of  the  United  States.  In  truth 
one  need  not  be  a  lawyer  to  realize  the  error  of  those  decisions, 
because  they  involve  the  fundamental  ideas  of  this  government 
and  are  repugnant  to  the  elementary  principles  of  government 
as  taught  to  every  school-boy  in  the  land. 

Mr.  Littlefield's  criticism  was  courageous  because  he  is  a  republi' 
can  having,  perhaps,  some  ambition  for  future  honors  at  his 
party's  hands.  But  Mr.  Littlefield  appears  to  be  a  lawyer  and  a 
patriot  before  he  is  a  republican,  and  his  condemnation  of  the 
insular  decisions  will  meet  the  hearty  approval  of  a  very  large 
majority  of  the  people,  although  some  may  not  be  brave  enough 
to  give  expression  to  their  disapproval. 

Mr.  Moses'  idea  that  even  when  one  believes  a  judicial  opinion 
to  be  wholly  wrong  and  destructive  of  the  very  foundation  of  the 
government,  no  criticism  should  be  uttered  on  that  opinion,  is 
not  a  good  sentiment  to  create  among  a  people  whose  happiness 
depends  upon  liberty.  Mr.  Littlefield  has  eminent  republican 
authority  for  criticising  the  action  of  men  on  the  bench.  It  was 
Mr.  Lincoln  who  said  that  "The  people  of  these  United  States  are 
the  rightful  masters  of  both  congresses  and  courts — not  to  over- 
throw the  constitution,  but  to  overthrow  men  who  pervert  the 
constitution." 

Mr.  Littlefield's  statement  that  it  seemed  to  him  that  the 
justices  were  "too  profoundly  impressed  with  the  supposed  conse- 
quences of  an  adverse  decision,"  finds  corroboration  even  in  the 
opinion  delivered  by  Justice  Brown  himself.  In  the  concluding 
paragraph  of  that  opinion  Justice  Brown  said: 

A.  false  step  at  this  time  might  be  fatal  to  the  development  of 
what  Chief  Justice  Marshall  called  the  American  empire.  The 
choice  in  some  cases,  the  natural  gravitation  of  small  bodies 
toward  large  ones  in  others,  the  result  of  a  successful  war  in 
still  others  may  bring  about  conditions  which  would  render  the 
annexation  of  distant  possessions  desirable.  If  those  possessions 
are  inhabited  by  alien  races,  differing  from  us  in  religion,  customs, 
laws,  methods  of  taxation  and  modes  of  thought,  the  administra- 


238  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

tion  of  government  and  justice,  according  to  Anglo-Saxon  prin- 
ciples, may  for  a  time  be  impossible  and  the  question  at  once 
arises  whether  large  concessions  ought  not  to  be  made  for  a  time, 
that  ultimately  our  own  theories  may  be  carried  out  and  the  bless- 
ings of  a  free  government  under  the  constitution  extended  to 
them.  We  decline  to  hold  that  there  is  anything  in  the  constitu- 
tion to  forbid  such  actiqn. 

Does  this  not  indicate,  exactly  as  Mr.  Littlefield  said,  that  the 
justices  were  "profoundly  impressed  with  the  consequences  of  an 
adverse  decision"? 


JUDICIAL  TYRANNY. 

Judge  John  H.  Baker,  of  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  at 
Indianapolis,  issued  an  order  against  strikers,  which  is  referred 
to  as  the  most  sweeping  order  of  its  kind  ever  issued  by  a  court. 
Among  other  things,  this  order  restrains  the  strikers  "from  com- 
pelling or  inducing,  or  attempting  to  compel  or  induce,  by  threats, 
intimidations,  persuasion,  force  or  violence"  any  of  their  fellow 
employes  "to  refuse  or  fail  to  do  their  work  or  discharge  their  du- 
ties as  such  employes." 

The  strikers  are  also  restrained  from  inducing  any  of  their  fel- 
low employes  to  quit  work.  They  are  also  restrained  from  induc- 
ing any  persons  to  enter  the  employ  of  the  concern  against  which 
the  strikers  are  contending.  It  is  also  provided  in  this  order  that  the 
strikers  must  refrain  "from  going,  either  singly  or  collectively,  to 
the  homes  of  employes"  for  the  purpose  of  inducing  these  em- 
ployes to  quit  work. 

The  attorney  for  the  strikers  has  advised  them, — "I  do  not 
believe  the  judge  meant  that  you  could  not  argue,  soberly  and 
pleasantly,  to  induce  any  man  to  join  you.  He  could  not  forbid 
that."  If  the  judge  did  not  mean  this,  then  no  meaning  can  be 
conveyed  through  the  English  language.  And  yet  it  is  difficult 
to  believe  that  in  this  free  country  a  judge  could  be  found  who 
would  issue  an  order,  which,  if  it  means  anything  at  all,  strikes  a 
blow  at  free  speech. 

The  attorney  for  the  concern  against  which  the  strikers  are  con- 
tending says  that  the  word  persuasion  means  just  what  it  says.  "It 
means  just  this,"  said  this  attorney,  "that  if  any  one  of  those  strik- 
ers should  go  to  the  house  of  any  employe,  or  stop  him  on  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  239 

street,  or  any  other  place,  and  endeavor  to  talk  him  or  her  into 
joining  the  strike,  that  person,  or  persons,  is  in  contempt  of  court." 
This  is  a  very  frank  statement  of  the  court's  order ;  and  yet  can 
any  one  imagine  a  more  un-American  judicial  decree  than  that 
which  would  prevent  men  from  doing  what  this  lawyer  declares  the 
court's  order  seeks  to  prevent? 


ME.  BRYAN'S  PLANS. 

Below  will  be  found  two  press  dispatches : 

EVANSTON,  WYO.,  Aug.  21. — William  J.  Bryan  came  to  Wyoming 
recently  to  fish  for  trout,  and  as  a  side  issue  he  has  become  inter- 
ested in  oil.  Following  the  example  of  his  colleagues  in  their 
fight  against  the  oil  octopus,  former  Governor  Hogg  of  Texas, 
former  Senator  Pettigrew  of  South  Dakota,  and  former  Senator 
Charles  A.  Towne  of  Minnesota,  the  erstwhile  democratic  candidate 
has  purchased  oil  lands  in  the  petroleum  soaked  region  of  Spring 
Valley,  near  here. 

CHICAGO,  ILL.,  August  23. — William  Jennings  Bryan,  rumor 
says,  will  probably  move  his  paper,  THE  COMMONER,  to  Chicago 
and  make  this  city  his  home. 

Efforts  have  been  made  without  success  to  trace  the  rumor 
to  its  source,  but  some  of  the  leading  democrats  in  Chicago  have 
known  it  for  some  time  past  and  are  ready  to  sanction  the 
project  and  bid  THE  COMMONER  godspeed.  The  rumor  credits 
Mr.  Bryan  with  an  intention  to  take  political  root  here,  with 
the  hope  of  succeeding  Mayor  Harrison  in  the  mayoralty.  But 
the  Harrison  men  shake  their  heads  dubiously  when  that  part  of  the 
plan  is  mentioned  and  intimate  that  Mr.  Bryan  stands  more  hope 
of  the  presidency  than  of  that. 

Mr.  Bryan  is  now  in  Wyoming.  His  brother,  business  man- 
ager of  THE  COMMONER,  was  interviewed  in  Lincoln  to-night 
and  said  he  had  no  knowledge  of  the  alleged  plan  of  removal  to 
Chicago. 

These  are  reproduced  to  show  the  readers  what  passes  for  "news." 
Both  items  are  entirely  without  foundation.  Mr.  Bryan  not  only 
has  no  investments  in  oil  lands,  but  has  never  contemplated  in- 
vesting in  oil  lands.  His  only  business  enterprise  is  THE  COM- 
MONER, and  he  has  no  intention  of  taking  stock  or  interest  in  any- 
thing else. 


240  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

As  to  leaving  Nebraska,  he  has  no  thought  of  such  a  thing. 
He  is  now  preparing  to  build  a  cottage  upon  his  farm,  three  miles 
southeast  of  Lincoln,  and  expects  to  spend  the  remainder  of  his 
days  there.  The  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  will  be  kept  fully 
informed  as  to  Mr.  Bryan's  plans  and  purposes  and  they  need 
not  pay  any  attention  to  "rumors"  and  "reports"  emanating  from 
any  other  source.  THE  COMMONER  will  continue  to  be  published 
at  Lincoln.  It  is  near  the  center  of  the  union  and  from  this 
point  the  paper  can  be  distributed  without  inconvenience  or  delay 
to  all  the  states  and  territories. 


THE  NATION  MOUENS. 

The  nation  bows  in  sorrow  and  in  humiliation — in  sorrow 
because  its  chief  executive,  its  official  head,  is  passing  through 
the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death — in  humiliation  because  the 
president  of  our  republic  has  fallen  a  victim  to  the  cruel  and 
cowardly  methods  employed  in  monarchies  where  helpless  and 
hopeless  subjects  sometimes  meet  arbitrary  power  with  violence. 

In  morals  and  in  the  contemplation  of  law  all  lives  are  of  equal 
value — all  are  priceless — but  when  seventy-five  millions  of  people 
select  one  of  their  number  and  invest  him  with  the  authority 
which  attaches  to  the  presidency,  he  becomes  their  representative 
and  a  blow  aimed  at  him  is  resented  as  an  attack  upon  all. 

Beneath  the  partisanship  of  the  individual  lies  the  patriotism 
of  the  citizen,  sometimes  dormant,  it  is  true,  but  always  active 
in  hours  of  peril  or  misfortune.  While  the  president's  life  hangs 
in  the  balance  there  are  no  party  lines.  The  grief  of  personal 
friends  and  close  political  associates  may  be  more  poignant,  but 
their  sympathy  is  not  more  sincere  than  that  extended  by  political 
opponents.  Although  none  but  his  family  and  his  physicians 
are  admitted  to  his  room,  all  his  countrymen  are  at  his  bedside 
in  thought  and  sentiment  and  their  prayers  ascend  for  his  re- 
covery. It  was  characteristic  of  his  thoughtfulness  that,  even 
amid  the  excitement  following  the  assault,  he  cautioned  his  com- 
panions not  to  exaggerate  his  condition  to  his  invalid  wife. 

The  latest  dispatches  give  gratifying  news  of  his  improvement, 
but  there  is  still  deep  solicitude  lest  unfavorable  symptoms  maj 
yet  appear. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  241 

And  the  humiliation!  Are  our  public  servants — those  who  are 
chosen  by  the  people  and  who  exercise  for  a  limited  time  the 
authority  bestowed  by  the  people — are  these  to  live  in  constant 
fear  of  assassination?  Is  there  to  be  no  difference  between  our 
constitutional  government  and  those  despotic  governments  which 
rest,  not  upon  the  consent  of  the  governed,  but  upon  brutal  force? 

There  is  no  place  for  anarchy  in  the  United  States;  there  is 
no  room  here  for  those  who  commit,  counsel  or  condone  murder, 
no  matter  what  political  excuse  may  be  urged  in  its  defense.  The 
line  between  peaceful  agitation  and  violence  is  clear  and  distinct. 
We  have  freedom  of  speech  and  freedom  of  the  press  in  this 
country,  and  they  are  essential  to  the  maintenance  of  our  liber- 
ties. If  any  one  desires  to  criticise  the  methods  of  government 
or  the  conduct  of  an  official,  he  has  a  perfect  right  to  do  so,  but 
his  appeal  must  be  to  the  intelligence  and  patriotism  of  his  fellow- 
citizens,  not  to  force.  Let  no  one  imagine  that  he  can  improve 
social  or  political  conditions  by  the  shedding  of  blood. 

Free  governments  may  be  overthrown,  but  they  cannot  be  re- 
formed by  those  who  violate  the  commandment,  "Thou  shalt  not 
kill." 

Under  a  government  like  ours  every  wrong  can  be  remedied 
by  law  and  the  laws  are  in  the  hands  of  the  people  themselves. 
Anarchy  can  be  neither  excused  nor  tolerated  here.  The  man 
who  proposes  to  right  a  public  wrong  by  taking  the  life  of  a 
human  being  makes  himself  an  outlaw  and  cannot  consistently 
appeal  to  the  protection  of  the  government  which  he  repudiates. 
He  invites  a  return  to  a  state  of  barbarism  in  which  each  one 
must,  at  his  own  risk,  defend  his  own  rights  and  avenge  his  own 
wrongs. 

The  punishment  administered  to  the  would-be  assassin  and  to 
his  co-conspirators,  if  he  has  any,  should  be  such  as  to  warn  all 
inclined  to  anarchy  that  while  this  is  an  asylum  for  those  who 
love  liberty  it  is  an  inhospitable  place  for  those  who  raise  their 
hands  against  all  forms  of  government. 


242  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


XII. 
LABOR  DAY. 

Labor  Day  was  quite  generally  observed  this  year.  This  is,  in 
itself,  a  gratifying  sign.  A  review  of  the  speeches  made  in  the 
various  cities  shows  that  the  two  subjects  considered  were,  first, 
the  dignity  of  labor  and,  second,  labor's  share  of  the  rewards 
of  toil. 

It  ought  to  be  unnecessary  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  all  honest 
labor  is  honorable,  but  there  is  such  haste  to  be  rich  and  such 
fawning  before  inherited  and  suddenly  acquired  wealth  that  it 
requires  all  the  influence  that  Labor  Day  can  exert  to  relieve 
manual  labor  of  the  odium  into  which  it  seems  to  be  falling. 
There  is  a  Bible  text  which  is  especially  appropriate  for  considera- 
tion on  Labor  Day.  It  is  a  part  of  the  old  Mosaic  law,  but  it  is 
twice  quoted  with  approval  in  the  New  Testament.  It  reads: 
"Muzzle  not  the  mouth  of  the  ox  that  treadeth  out  the  corn." 
If  the  dumb  beasts  whose  physical  strength  we  utilize  must  not 
be  neglected,  with  how  much  greater  force  does  the  injunction 
apply  to  our  brethren  of  flesh  and  blood  whose  brawn  and  muscle 
furnish  society  with  food  and  fuel,  with  clothing,  shelter  and 
all  the  comforts  of  life?  And  yet  every  decade  sees  a  less  per 
cent,  of  the  wealth  produced  remaining  in  the  hands  of  the  wealth 
producers.  This  condition  is  neither  just  nor  satisfactory.  The 
toilers  on  the  farm  and  in  the  factory  have  cause  to  believe  that 
they  are  being  cheated  out  of  a  part  of  their  earnings. 

One  of  the  things  that  labor  has  reason  to  fear  is  the  effect  of 
private  monopoly.  The  trusts  have  been  growing  rapidly  during 
the  last  few  years  and  all  wage-earners  are  menaced  by  them. 
Some  have  suggested  that  the  employes  should  join  with  the 
employers  in  controlling  the  industries  and  then  divide  the  ad- 
vantages of  higher  prices.  Such  a  proposition  is  immoral  as  well 
as  impolitic.  The  employes  could  no  more  justify  aiding  the 
trusts  to  extort  from  the  consumers,  even  if  they  could  share  in 
the  results,  than  an  honest  citizen  could  justify  giving  aid  to  a 
highwayman  on  promise  of  part  of  the  plunder. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  243 

But  such  an  agreement  would  be  as  unwise  as  wrong.  If  trust- 
made  articles  are  sold  at  high  prices,  compared  with  other 
products,  the  demand  will  be  reduced  and  labor  thrown  out  of 
employment. 

In  a  test  of  endurance  the  farmer  can  stand  it  longer  than  the 
man  in  the  factory,  but  why  should  the  laboring  man  in  the  city 
array  himself  against  his  best  friend — the  farmer? 

The  trust  hurts  the  consumer  first,  and  then  the  producer  of 
raw  material,  and  last — and  possibly  most — the  laborer.  All  three 
should  combine  to  destroy  the  private  monopolies  now  in  existence 
and  to  prevent  the  creation  of  any  new  monopolies. 

Next  to  the  trust  in  its  evil  effect  upon  labor  is  what  is  known 
as  government  by  injunction.  According  to  our  theory  of  govern- 
ment, the  executive,  legislative  and  judicial  branches  should  be 
kept  separate  and  distinct,  but  it  is  coming  to  be  the  custom  for 
the  judge  to  issue  an  order  declaring  an  act  to  be  unlawful  which 
before  was  lawful  and  then  to  assume  the  prerogatives  of  the 
executive  and  enforce  the  law,  while  as  judge  he  sits  without  jury 
to  condemn  the  person  whom  he  is  prosecuting.  The  main  pur- 
pose of  this  judicial  process  is  to  deprive  the  accused  of  trial  by 
jury,  and  while  every  citizen  should  resist  this  attack  on  the  jury 
system  the  employes  of  great  corporations  are  just  now  its  special 
victims. 

The  wage-earners  as  a  part,  and  as  an  important  part,  too,  of 
society,  are  interested  in  all  questions  which  affect  our  civilization, 
but  they  are  at  present  experiencing  the  necessity  of  reform  along 
the  lines  above  suggested. 

It  was  noticeable  everywhere  that  those  who  addressed  the 
people  at  labor-day  meetings  pointed  out  the  fact  that  wrongs 
could  only  be  remedied  at  the.  ballot-box.  Mayor  Eeed  of  Kansas 
City  stated  the  case  aptly  when  he  said  that  the  laboring  men 
were  not  law-breakers  but  should  be  law-makers. 

Jackson,  in  his  celebrated  message  vetoing  the  extension  of  the 
bank  charter,  said  that  the  humbler  members  of  society  were  the 
victims  of  injustice  whenever  the  government,  by  granting  legis- 
lative favors  and  privileges,  made  the  rich  richer  and  the  potent 
more  powerful.  If  the  men  who  eat  their  bread  in  the  sweat  of 
the  face  would  act  in  concert  at  the  polls,  a  speedy  and  inex- 
pensive remedy  would  be  found  for  every  evil  complained  of. 


244  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


THE  STAR'S  INCONSISTENCY. 

In  its  issue  of  September  ,3,  the  Kansas  City  Star  took  Mr. 
Bryan  to  task  because  of  his  labor  day  address.  The  Star  in- 
sisted that  Mr.  Bryan  was  "looking  on  the  dark  side."  Among 
other  things  that  newspaper  said: 

"Look  at  the  wealth  of  this  country — is  the  division  just?" 
was  one  of  Mr.  Bryan's  interrogations.  No,  it  is  not  just,  nor 
can  the  distribution  of  wealth  be  absolutely  just  under  any  form 
of  government  and  with  any  race  of  people.  Even  the  socialistic 
doctrine,  which  aims  at  ideal  co-operation,  distribution  and  com- 
pensation, cannot  possibly  insure  absolute  equity,  for  some  de- 
serve more  than  others — earn  more  than  others.  Such  a  question 
answers  itself,  but  the  effect  of  asking  it  of  the  poorer  class  is 
to  engender  a  feeling  among  that  class  against  the  richer — and 
that  is  not  in  accordance  with  the  democratic  spirit  of  this  country, 
which  gives  every  man  a  right  to  acquire  and  possess. 

To  say  that  absolute  perfection  cannot  be  attained  in  the  dis- 
tribution of  wealth  is  no  defense  of  a  bad  law  or  a  bad  system.  It 
should  be  the  aim  of  every  good  citizen  to  aid  in  making  the  govern- 
ment as  nearly  perfect  as  possible.  Each  person  should  receive  from 
society  in  proportion  as  he  contributes  to  society — this  is  the  ideal 
condition  and  should  be  approached  as  nearly  as  human  ingenuity 
can  devise.  But  the  purpose  of  this  editorial  is  not  to  defend  Mr. 
Bryan  but  to  call  attention  to  the  Star's  inconsistency. 

In  its  issue  of  Wednesday,  September  4,  the  Star  made  ad- 
mirable answer  to  itself.  Under  the  headline  "Wounds  of  a 
Friend,"  the  Star  had  this  to  say : 

"Faithful  are  the  wounds  of  a  friend,"  said  Solomon,  the  wise 
man  of  old.  Under  this  head  may  be  classed  the  utterances  of 
Theodore  Eoosevelt  in  his  address  at  Minneapolis  on  Labor  Day. 
Standing  out  strong  and  clear  among  all  of  the  declarations  which 
have  been  made  on  the  subject  of  trusts  are  the  following  senti- 
ments by  the  vice-president:  "We  shall  find  it  necessary  in  the 
future  to  shackle  cunning,  as  in  the  past  we  have  shackled  force." 
*  "The  vast  individual  and  corporate  fortunes,  the  vast 
combinations  of  capital  which  have  marked  the  development  of 
our  industrial  system  create  new  conditions  and  necessitate  a  change 
from  the  old  attitude  of  the  state  and  the  nation  toward  property." 

These  are  direct  and  pointed  sentiments  inspired  by  conditions"  to 
which  no  thoughtful  and  sober-minded  man  can  be  blind.  They 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  245 

arc  not  uttered  in  any  spirit  of  intemperate  agitation  or  with  any 
purpose  to  excite  false  alarm  for  political  purposes.  They  come 
from  an  influential  member  of  the  party  which  capital  in  modern 
years  has  regarded  as  its  chosen  champion.  They  do  not  proceed 
from  a  person  who  has  excited  the  suspicion  of  the  conservative 
clement  by  the  radical  character  of  his  opinions. 

In  admonishing  the  large  capitalists  of  their  duty  Mr.  Eoosevelt 
is  speaking  to  persons  with  whom  he  has  been  intimately  associated. 
He  is  prominently  identified  with  the  social  and  political  life 
of  the  richest  community  in  America.  He  is  a  New  Yorker  by 
heredity.  He  is  known  and  esteemed  by  the  so-called  money  kings. 
He  could  have  no  possible  motive  in  wishing  to  overthrow  a 
fabric  which  would  bring  destruction  to  those  who  are  of  the 
same  political  household  of  faith  with  himself. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  speaks  as  a  friend  to  the  rich  men  who  are  rapidly 
gaining  control  of  the  industries  and  the  commerce  of  the  nation. 
Will  it  not  be  infinitely  wiser  for  them  to  hear  him  and  heed  him 
and  follow  his  counsel  than  to  persist  in  their  scheme  of  self- 
aggrandizement  at  the  certain  risk  of  inviting  a  violent  and  im- 
placable conflict  with  avowed  enemies,  who  have  none  of  the 
regard  for  the  rights  of  capital  which  Mr.  Roosevelt  has  always 
shown  ? 

Why  does  the  Star  publish  editorials  like  this,  which  have  the 
effect  "to  engender  a  feeling  among  that  class  (the  workingmen) 
against  the  richer"  ? 

If  it  is  wrong  for  a  man  who  has  "excited  the  suspicion  of  the 
conservative  element  by  the  radical  character  of  his  opinions" 
to  utter  the  sentiments  which  Mr.  Bryan  did  at  Kansas  City, 
is  it  not  all  the  more  wrong  for  a  "thoughtful  and  sober-minded 
man"  like  Mr.  Roosevelt  to  give  expression  to  similar  sentiments? 

Mr.  Roosevelt  said  that  "we  shall  find  it  necessary  in  the  future 
to  shackle  cunning  as  in  the  past  we  have  shackled  force."  He 
even  went  so  far  as  to  intimate  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  make 
"a  change  from  the  old  attitude  of  the  state  and  the  nation  toward 
property;"  the  very  thing  which  above  all  others  the  republican 
party  has  insisted  is  sacred. 

When  Mr.  Bryan  said  things  of  this  character  the  Kansas  City 
Star  said  it  was  "not  in  accordance  with  the  democratic  spirit  of 
this  country  which  gives  every  man  a  right  to  acquire  and  possess." 
But  when  Mr.  Roosevelt  said  these  things  this  same  newspaper 
cordially  commended  the  speaker  and  warned  "the  rich  men  who  are 
rapidly  gaining  control  of  the  industries  and  commerce  of  the 


246  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

nation"  that  they  will  do  well  to  hear  and  heed  and  follow  the 
counsel  of  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

This  same  newspaper  warns  the  trust  magnates  that  they  will 
make  a  mistake  if  they  persist  in  their  "scheme  of  self-aggrandize- 
ment/' and  that  persistence  in  that  direction  will  be  "at  the  risk 
of  inviting  a  violent  and  implacable  conflict." 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  Star  points  out  that  the  opinions 
expressed  by  Mr.  Roosevelt  "do  not  proceed  from  a  person  who  has 
caused  the  suspicion  of  the  conservative  element  by  the  radical 
character  of  his  opinions,"  and  then  in  the  same  issue  in  which  the 
Star  commends  Mr.  Roosevelt's  protest  against  the  trusts  it  in 
another  editorial  says : 

William  Jennings  Bryan,  with  all  his  professed  hostility  for 
combinations  against  trade,  has  never  said  anything  in  relation 
to  trusts  so  emphatic  and  unequivocal  as  the  utterances  of  Vice- 
President  Roosevelt  at  Minneapolis.  To  the  notable  political  epi- 
grams of  the  day  must  be  added  the  declaration  of  Mr.  Roosevelt 
that  "we  shall  find  it  necessary  in  the  future  to  shackle  force."  The 
whole  range  of  modern  democratic  literature  might  be  searched  in 
vain  for  a  pronunciamento  more  courageous  than  that  on  the 
tyrannical  centralization  of  capital. 

So,  according  to  the  Star's  own  statement,  there  is  more  of 
the  "radical  character"  about  Mr.  Roosevelt's  opinion  than  at- 
taches to  the  opinion  of  Mr.  Bryan. 

But  the  question  is — of  what  moment  is  it  who  gave  utterance 
to  protests  against  these  "schemes  of  self-aggrandizement"?  Of 
what  importance  is  it  whether  the  protests  were  uttered  by  a  man 
like  Mr.  Bryan,  who  the  Star  says  has  "excited  the  suspicion 
of  the  conservative  element  by  the  radical  character  of  his  opin- 
ions," or  from  Theodore  Roosevelt,  whom  this  republican  organ 
is  pleased  to  consider  "a  thoughtful  and  sober-minded  man"?  Is 
not  the  question — "Is  it  the  truth?" — the  all  important  one  in 
the  contemplation  of  such  a  protest  ? 

If  conditions  warrant  such  a  protest,  if  the  protest  is  based 
on  justice  and  truth,  is  the  fact  in  any  wise  altered  whether  the 
protest  is  made  by  Mr.  Bryan  or  by  Mr.  Roosevelt? 

Why  is  it  that,  when  a  democrat  enters  protest  against  "self- 
aggrandizement,"  this  Kansas  City  paper  finds  it  necessary  to 
argue  that  such  a  protest  is.  "not  in  accordance  with  the  demo- 
cratic spirit  of  this  country  which  gives  every  man  a  right  to 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  247 

acquire  and  possess";  while  when  a  similar  protest  is  made  by 
a  republican  this  same  Kansas  City  paper  on  the  very  follow- 
ing day  refers  to  the  latter  protest  as  "direct  and  pointed  senti- 
ments, inspired  by  conditions  to  which  no  thoughtful  and  sober- 
minded  man  can  be  blind"? 

If  every  man  has  a  right  to  "acquire  and  possess"  regardless 
of  the  rights  of  others,  as  the  Star  intimated  in  its  criticism  of 
Mr.  Bryan,  then  with  what  reason  may  we  object  to  the  schemes 
of  "self -aggrandizement"  by  which  certain  rich  men  are  "rapidly 
gaining  control  of  the  industries  and  the  commerce  of  the  nation"  ? 

Is  there  not  danger  that  by  the  publication  of  such  editorials 
as  these  the  Kansas  City  Star  will  do  things  "not  in  accordance 
with  the  democratic  spirit  of  this  country  which  gives;  every 
man  a  right  to  acquire  and  possess"? 

In  all  seriousness,  can  a  great  newspaper  like  the  Kansas  City 
Star  hope  that  its  readers  will  give  serious  attention  to  its  opin- 
ions when  on  one  day  it  condemns  Mr.  Bryan  for  giving  utter- 
ance to  certain  sentiments,  and  on  the  next  day  commends  Mr. 
Roosevelt  for  giving  expression  to  similar  sentiments  ? 


MAKING  AND  RECEIVING  APOLOGIES. 

The  Emperor  of  Germany  has  done  the  world  a  distinct  service 
by  modifying  his  requirements  of  the  Chinese  representative, 
charged  with  making  an  apology  to  Germany,  to  the  extent  that 
it  was  not  necessary  for  the  Chinese  representative  to  "kowtow." 
This  ceremony  would  have  consisted  of  the  Chinese  representative 
approaching  the  Emperor  of  Germany  on  his  knees  and  knocking 
his  head  on  the  floor  nine  times. 

In  the  presence  of  an  apology  between  individuals,  if  both 
parties  be  intelligent,  there  must  necessarily  be  some  embarrass- 
ment, and  the  embarrassment  is  by  no  means  one  sided.  It  is 
just  as  difficult  to  accept  an  apology  gracefully  as  it  is  to  grace- 
fully extend  an  apology.  And  the  burden  of  acting  gracefully 
rests  as  heavily  upon  the  recipient  of  an  apology  as  it  does  upon 
the  one  required  to  make  the  apology. 

The  man  who,  being  tendered  a  full  and  complete  apology, 
made  in  a  manly  way  with  the  form  of  the  apologist  erect,  with 
the  eye  of  the  apologist  looking  frankly  into  the  eye  of  the  one 


248  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

to  whom  the  apology  is  due,  must  on  his  part  be  equally  manly. 
He  must  accept  it  in  the  spirit  in  which  it  is  tendered,  and  the 
real  man,  appreciating  the  difficulties  pf  his  unfortunate  fellow, 
will  make  the  situation  as  easy  as  possible  for  the  apologist. 

So  the  ruler  of  a  nation  to  whom  an  apology  must  be  made 
by  the  representative  of  another  nation  has  nothing  to  gain  and 
everything  to  lose  when  he  makes  conditions  that  in  no  way  benefit 
his  country,  but  bear  heavily  upon  the  individual  representative 
of  the  apologising  country. 

The  people  of  Germany  are  too  intelligent  to  require  at  the 
hands  of  China's  representative  the  humiliation  that  the  "kow- 
towing" ceremony  would  impose  upon  him.  Had  that  ceremony 
been  required,  the  people  of  Germany  would  themselves  have 
been  humiliated  before  the  civilized  world,  and  the  representatives 
of  civilization  would  have  lost  another  opportunity  of  setting  a 
good  example  to  the  world's  barbarians. 


WILL  THEY  EEMEMBEE? 

Mr.  Davis,  vice-president  of  the  Amalgamated  Association,  in 
a  recent  speech,  charged  J.  Pierpont  Morgan  with  a  fixed  deter- 
mination to  destroy  all  labor  organizations.  He  said : 

The  steel  men  are  picked  as  the  first  organization  to  be  wiped 
out.  That  is  why  the  opposition  to  us  is  so  bitter,  so  uncompro- 
mising, so  regardless  of  the  possibility  of  arbitration.  Next  will 
come  the  poor  old  miners,  if  we  are  beaten.  Then  the  carpenters 
and  machinists,  and  after  them  one  trade  after  another.  If  we 
are  defeated  we  shall  all  become  slaves,  and  life  will  no  longer 
be  worth  living. 

That  the  trusts,  if  permitted  to  exist,  will  ultimately  destroy 
the  labor  unions,  is  too  plain  a  proposition  to  admit  of  dispute,  but 
will  the  laboring  men  remember  at  the  polls  the  lesson  they  are 
learning  at  the  door  of  the  factory?  The  wage-earners  have  it 
in  their  power  to  destroy  every  trust  and,  by  so  doing,  to  restore 
the  era  of  industrial  independence,  but  will  they  exert  that  power 
on  election  day?  No  one  who  understands  history  or  human  nature 
can  doubt  that  private  monopolies  are  a  menace  to  employes,  as 
well  as  to  producers  of  raw  material  and  to  consumers.  The  time 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  249 

will  come  when  the  evils  of  the  trust  system  will  be  recognized 
by  all,  but  in  the  meantime  many  bitter  lessons  are  being  learned. 
"Experience  is  a  dear  teacher/'  but  apparently  the  only  one  whose 
instruction  is  heeded. 


"GOD'S  WILL,  NOT  OUKS,  BE  DONE." 

These  were  the  last  words  of  President  McKinley  as  he  bade 
farewell  to  the  loving  companion  of  his  life,  to  whom  his  kind- 
ness and  devotion  have  been  so  constant  and  conspicuous.  It  was 
with  this  beautiful  spirit  of  resignation  that  he  turned  from  the 
realities  of  earth  to  explore  the  mysteries  of  the  world  beyond. 

The  struggle  was  over — the  struggle  of  a  week  during  which  hope 
and  fear  alternately  gained  the  mastery.  The  book  of  life  is 
closed,  and  his  achievements  are  a  part  of  history.  After  he  be- 
came conscious  that  the  end  was  drawing  near,  but  before  the 
shadows  quite  obscured  the  light,  he  was  heard  to  murmur 
some  of  the  words  of  "Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee."  This  sacred 
hymn,  which  will  be  found  in  full  upon  another  page,  contains 
several  lines  inspired  by  Jacob's  night  at  Bethel: 

Though,  like  a  wanderer, 

The  sun  gone  down, 
Darkness  be  over  me, 

My  rest  a  stone 

Thus  do  the  lines  immortalize  the  pillow  which  to  Jacob  must 
have  seemed  hard  indeed — the  pillow  which,  when  morning  came, 
the  patriarch  would  not  have  exchanged  for  the  softest  one  on 
which  a  weary  head  was  ever  laid. 

It  is  still  true  that  one's  sorest  afflictions  and  most  bitter  ex- 
periences are  sometimes  stepping  stones  to  higher  rewards. 

The  terrible  deed  at  Buffalo,  rudely  breaking  the  ties  of  family 
and  friendship  and  horrifying  every  patriotic  citizen,  crowns  a 
most  extraordinary  life  with  a  halo  that  cannot  but  exalt  its  vic- 
tim's place  in  history,  while  his  bravery  during  the  trying  ordeal, 
his  forgiving  spirit  and  his  fortitude  in  the  final  hours  give  glimpses 
of  his  inner  life  which  nothing  less  tragic  could  have  revealed. 

But,  inexpressibly  sad,  as  is  the  death  of  McKinley,  the  illus- 
trious citizen,  it  is  the  damnable  murder  of  McKinley,  the  presi- 
dent, that  melts  seventy-five  million  hearts  into  one  and  brings 
a  hush  to  the  farm,  the  factory  and  the  forum. 


250  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Death  is  the  inevitable  incident  of  every  human  career.  It 
despises  the  sword  and  shield  of  the  warrior,  and  laughs  at  the 
precautions  suggested  by  science;  wealth  cannot  build  walls  high 
enough  or  thick  enough  to  shut  it  out,  and  no  house  is  humble 
enough  to  escape  its  visitation.  Even  love,  the  most  potent  force 
known  to  man — love,  the  characteristic  which  links  the  human 
to  the  divine — even  love  is  powerless  in  its  presence.  Its  contingency 
is  recognized  in  the  marriage  vow — "until  death  us  do  part" — and 
is  written  upon  friendship's  signet  ring.  But  the  death,  even 
when  produced  by  natural  causes,  of  a  public  servant  charged  with 
the  tremendous  responsibilities  which  press  upon  a  president, 
shocks  the  entire  country  and  is  infinitely  multipled  when  the  cir- 
cumstances attending  it  constitute  an  attack  upon  the  govern- 
ment itself.  No  one  can  estimate  the  far-reaching  effect  of  such 
an  act  as  that  which  now  casts  a  gloom  over  our  land.  It  shames 
America  in  the  eyes  of  the  world;  it  impairs  her  moral  prestige 
and  gives  the  enemies  of  free  government  a  chance  to  mock  at  her. 
And  it  excites  an  indignation  which,  while  righteous  in  itself, 
may  lead  to  acts  which  will  partake  of  the  spirit  of  lawlessness. 

As  the  president's  death  overwhelms  all  in  a  common  sorrow, 
so  it  imposes  a  common  responsibility,  namely,  to  so  avenge  the 
wrong  done  to  the  president,  his  family  and  the  country,  as  to 
make  the  executive's  life  secure  without  bringing  insecurity  to  free- 
dom of  speech  or  freedom  of  the  press. 


HUSBAND  AND  WIFE. 

One  of  the  many  striking  and  touching  incidents  occurring  at 
Buffalo  was  the  meeting  between  the  President  and  Mrs.  Mc- 
Kinley  for  the  first  time  after  the  assault.  The  dispatches  re- 
port that  Mrs.  McKinley  took  a  seat  at  the  bedside  and  held  the 
President's  hand.  The  distinguished  sufferer  looked  into  the  face 
of  his  good  wife  and  said  in  a  low  tone,  "We  must  bear  up;  it 
will  be  better  for  us  both."  With  tears  streaming  down  her  cheeks, 
Mrs.  McKinley  nodded  assent. 

There  is  a  depth  of  pathos  in  this  little  incident  that  must 
appeal  forcefully  to  those  who  appreciate  the  strength  of  the 
ties  that  bind  a  good  husband  to  a  good  wife. 

There  may  be  some  people  who  have  no  idea  of  the  thoughts 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  251 

that  were  passing  through  the  minds  of  this  couple  at  that  mo- 
ment. There  are,  however,  many  others  who  can  imagine  what 
these  thoughts  were.  There,  on  the  bed  of  pain,  lay  the  strong, 
powerful  man.  By  his  side  sat  the  frail  woman,  whose  physical 
weakness  has  been,  for  so  many  years,  the  subject  of  this  hus- 
band's tender  solicitude.  In  an  humble  way  they  began  life  to- 
gether. Two  little  graves  had  for  them  a  common  interest.  In 
prosperity  and  in  adversity  they  had  stood  together,  participating 
equally  in  the  joys  and  sharing  equally  in  the  sorrows  of  life. 
The  wife  had  shared  in  the  great  honors  that  had  come  to  her 
husband,  and  now,  when  the  very  summit  of  political  ambition 
had  been  reached  and  political  honors  had  become  so  common  that 
the  conveniences  of  a  quiet,  domestic  life  were  longed  for  by  the 
woman,  in  order,  as  she  often  expressed  it,  that  she  might  have 
her  husband  to  herself,  the  bullet  of  an  assassin  had  done  the  work 
that  threatened  to  blast  the  highest  ambition  of  this  woman's  life. 

"We  must  bear  up,"  said  the  President;  "it  will  be  better  for 
us  both."  It  matters  not  to  what  extent  other  men  and  women 
may  have  grieved;  it  matters  not  how  many  tears  other  men  and 
women  may  have  shed  and  how  much  other  hearts  may  have  ached. 
All  of  this  grief  and  woe  could  not  have  been  so  acute  as  was  the 
grief  and  woe  which  this  man  and  woman  suppressed  in  com- 
pliance with  the  suggestion,  "it  will  be  better  for  us  both." 

There  is  nothing  in  all  this  world  more  beautiful  than  a  happy 
marriage.  There  is  in  all  this  world  nothing  more  inspiring, 
nothing  more  encouraging  than  the  devotion  and  love  that  abounds 
between  thousands  of  men  and  women;  devotion  and  love  which 
were  exemplified  in  the  relations  that  existed  between  the  late 
President  and  his  wife. 


THE  CUKE  FOR  ANARCHY. 

It  is  natural  that  the  wanton  and  brutal  assassination  of  the 
President  at  Buffalo  should  lead  to  a  discussion  of  ways  and  means 
for  driving  anarchy  out  of  the  United  States,  and  it  is  important 
that  the  subject  should  be  dealt  with  in  a  broad  and  comprehensive 
way.  Czolgosz  had  no  personal  animosity ;  he  was  not  seeking  re- 
venge for  any  wrong  that  the  administration  had  done  him;  he 
was  aiming  a  blow  at  the  government  of  which  Mr.  McKinley  was 


252  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

the  official  head.  Xo  considerable  number  of  the  American  people 
can  have  any  sympathy  with  the  murderer  or  with  those  who 
entertain  his  views  in  regard  to  government.  That  there  should 
be  laws  giving  all  possible  protection  to  our  officials  every  one 
will  concede;  the  only  question  open  for  discussion  is  how  to  apply 
an  effective  remedy.  The  suppression  of  anarchy  is  only  a  tempo- 
rary relief;  we  should  seek  not  merely  the  suppression,  but  the 
permanent  eradication  of  anarchy.  Stealing  can  and  should  be 
suppressed  by  law;  but  stealing  cannot  be  eradicated  until  people 
are  convinced  that  it  is  wrong  to  steal.  So,  anarchy  can  and 
should  be  suppressed  by  law,  but  it  cannot  be  entirely  eradicated 
until  all  are  convinced  that  anarchy  is  wrong.  Free  government, 
springing  as  directly  as  possible  from  the  people  and  made  as  re- 
sponsive as  possible  to  their  will,  is  the  only  permanent  and  com- 
plete cure  for  anarchy.  The  arbitrary  governments  of  the  old 
world  have  tried  suppression,  but  have  not  succeeded.  They  have 
lessened  anarchy  just  in  proportion  as  they  have  extended  civil 
liberty  and  participation  in  the  government. 

Stern  measure  must  be  invoked  for  the  suppression  and  pun- 
ishment of  every  manifestation  of  the  anarchistic  spirit,  but  beyond 
this  remedy  there  must  be  education.  All  must  be  taught  that 
government  is  an  absolute  necessity  and  that  our  form  of  govern- 
ment is  the  best  ever  devised.  Then  our  government  must  be  made 
as  good  as  intelligence  and  patriotism  can  make  it. 

There  is  in  every  human  heart  the  love  of  justice  and  to  this 
love  of  justice  every  government  should  appeal.  Victor  Hugo 
described  the  mob  as  the  human  race  in  misery.  No  government 
can  afford  to  make  its  people  miserable — not  even  a  small  part 
of  its  people.  Let  a  man  believe  that  he  is  being  justly  treated 
by  his  government  and  he  will  endure  almost  anything,  but  let 
him  feel  that  he  is  being  unjustly  dealt  with  and  even  a  slight 
wrong  will  rankle  in  his  bosom. 

In  a  government  deriving  its  powers  from  the  consent  of  the 
governed  men  will  endure  much  because  they  hope  for  a  remedy 
at  the  next  election.  Jefferson  understood  this  and  among  the 
things  urged  in  his  first  inaugural  address  was  "a  jealous  care 
of  the  right  of  election  by  the  people — a  mild  and  safe  corrective 
of  abuses  which  are  lopped  by  the  sword  of  revolution,  where 
peaceable  remedies  are  unprovided." 

A  man  is  never  dangerous  so  long  as  he  has  hope  of  relief  from 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  253 

an  evil,  whether  fancied  or  real,  but  when  despair  takes  the  place 
of  hope  he  becomes  a  menace  to  society  because  he  feels  he  has  noth- 
ing to  lose. 

While  we  are  legislating  to  prevent  any  manifestation  of  the 
anarchistic  spirit  on  American  soil,  we  should  avoid  those  things 
which  breed  anarchy.  Partiality  in  government  kindles  discontent ; 
the  exaltation  of  money  above  human  rights,  the  fattening  of  a  few 
at  the  expense  of  the  many,  the  making  of  artificial  distinctions  be- 
tween citizens  and  the  lessening  of  the  sacredness  of  human  life — • 
all  these  in  their  full  development  encourage  the  anarchistic  spirit. 
We  cannot  give  full  protection  to  our  officials  merely  by  passing 
laws  for  the  punishment  of  those  who  assault  them;  neither  can  we 
give  them  adequate  protection  by  closing  our  gates  to  those  known 
to  advocate  anarchy.  These  remedies,  good  as  far  as  they  go,  are 
incomplete.  We  can  only  bring  absolute  security  to  our  public 
servants  by  making  the  government  so  just  and  so  beneficent  that 
every  citizen  will  be  willing  to  give  his  life  if  need  be  to  preserve 
it  to  posterity.  When  Pericles  sought  to  explain  the  patriotism  of 
his  countrymen  who  fell  in  battle,  he  described  Greece  and  then 
added:  "It  was  for  such  a  country  then  that  these  men,  nobly  re- 
solving not  to  have  it  taken  from  them,  fell  fighting,  and  we  their 
survivors  may  be  well  willing  to  suffer  in  its  behalf." 

We  shall  fail  to  do  our  full  duty  as  citizens  unless  we  bend  every 
energy  toward  the  reform  of  every  governmental  abuse  and  the 
enactment  of  such  laws  as  are  necessary  to  protect  each  citizen  in 
the  enjoyment  of  life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness  and  to 
restrain  every  arm  uplifted  for  a  neighbor's  injury. 


CONTEMPTIBLE  POLITICS. 

Chairman  Dougherty  of  the  Ohio  Democratic  State  Committee, 
with  commendable  courtesy,  sent  a  communication  to  Chairman 
Dick  of  the  Republican  State  Committee  proposing  that,  in  view  of 
the  president's  assassination  and  as  a  mark  of  personal  respect  for 
him,  political  speaking  in  Ohio  be  suspended  during  the  present 
campaign.  Mr.  Dick  promptly  refused,  and  if  he  had  stopped  there 
no  serious  criticism  could  have  been  made  against  his  action,  but 
in  the  course  of  his  reply  he  resorted  to  as  contemptible  a  piece  of 
politics  as  has  been  practiced  for  a  long  time.  He  said: 


254  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

If  it  seems  best  to  your  committee  to  withdraw  from  antagoniz- 
ing those  principles,  and  to  cease  from  further  advocacy  of  political 
doctrines  which  the  President  has  always  believed  to  be  perilous 
to  the  prosperity  of  the  entire  country,  we  shall  be  very  glad  indeed 
to  be  advised  to  that  effect,  and  to  have  your  co-operation  hereafter 
in  the  maintenance  of  more  wholesome  public  politics. 

It  is  a  small  man  who  would  attempt  to  turn  a  great  national 
sorrow  into  a  little  partisian  advantage.  The  assault  upon  the  presi- 
dent, dastardly  as  it  was,  does  not  change  the  character  of  public 
questions.  Imperialism  is  just  as  un-American  as  it  was  before  and 
the  trusts  just  as  menacing  to  every  legitimate  industry.  The  vol- 
ume of  money  has  not  been  increased  by  the  calamity  which  has 
befallen  the  country,  nor  has  the  production  of  gold  or  the  balance 
of  trade  been  augmented  by  it.  State  issues  have  been  as  little 
affected  as  national  ones.  The  necessity  for  reform  in  taxation  and 
for  the  better  control  of  corporations  is  just  as  imperative  as  it 
would  have  been  had  no  anarchist  attacked  the  president.  The  peo- 
ple must  vote  on  these  questions. 

The  republican  party  must  be  in  a  desperate  condition  in  Ohio 
if  it  is  compelled  to  shield  itself  behind  the  universal  sympathy 
felt  for  the  late  president  and  his  widow.  Mr.  Dougherty  acted 
wisely  in  making  the  offer  which  he  did,  but  Mr.  Dick  has  not 
raised  himself  in  public  esteem  by  his  reply. 


DOOLEY  DISCUSSES  CANDIDATES. 

Mr.  Dunn,  the  humorist,  has  fairly  outdone  himself  in  his  dis- 
cussion of  the  men  who  have  been  suggested  for  the  democratic 
presidential  nomination.  His  business  is  to  find  the  weak  points 
in  the  armor  of  each,  and  every  public  man  has  some  weak  points. 
He  condenses  the  whole  question  into  a  sentence  when  he  says  that 
the  difficulty  is  that  every  candidate  mentioned  is  "either  a  traitor 
or  a  man  whom  the  traitors  won't  vote  for."  He  intimates  that 
the  party  might  advertise  for  a  candidate,  and  outlines  an  adver- 
tisement which  ought  to  be  satisfactory  to  those  democrats  who 
want  a  candidate  who  will  believe  in  enough  things  to  please 
everybody  and  yet  not  believe  in  anything  earnestly  enough  to 
offend  anybody.  The  proposed  advertisement  reads : 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  255 

Wanted — A  good,  active,  inergetic  dimmycrat,  sthrong  iv  lung 
an'  limb;  must  be  in  favor  iv  sound  money,  but  not  too  sound, 
an'  anti-impeeryalist,  but  f'r  holdin'  onto  what  we've  got,  an' 
inimy  iv  thrusts,  but  a  frind  iv  organized  capital,  a  sympathizer 
with  th'  crushed  an'  downthrodden  people,  but  not  be  anny  means 
hostile  to  vested  inth'rests;  must  advocate  sthrikes,  gover'mint  be 
injunction,  free  silver,  sound  money,  greenbacks,  a  single  tax,  a 
tariff  f'r  rivinoo,  th'  constitootion  to  follow  th'  flag  as  far  as  it 
can  go,  an'  no  farther,  civil  service  rayform  iv  th'  la'ads  in  office 
an'  all  th'  gr-eat  an'  gloryous  principles  iv  our  gr-eat  an'  gloryous 
party  or  anny  gr-reat  an'  gloryous  parts  thereof. 

One  beauty  about  Dooley's  writings  is  that  he  appears  to  have 
no  malice.  His  wit  is  so  clean  and  innocent  that  even  his  victims 
enjoy  his  thrusts. 


PEESIDENT  ROOSEVELT. 

Theodore  Eoosevelt  assumes  the  duties  of  the  presidency  under 
conditions  calculated  to  call  out  the  best  that  is  in  him ;  conditions 
which  will  make  more  ardent  his  natural  desire  to  fulfill  the  ex- 
pectations of  his  countrymen.  While  he  was  in  perfect  accord 
with  Mr.  McKinley  in  regard  to  public  questions,  his  strong  in- 
dividuality will  doubtless  cause  some  uncertainty  until  his  ad- 
ministrative policies  are  developed.  He  enters  office  more  free 
from  political  obligations  than  he  could  have  done  had  he  re- 
ceived a  party  nomination  after  a  long  contest.  Mr.  Eoosevelt 
has  a  high  conception  of  civic  virtue  and  his  opponents  will  prob- 
ably find  more  to  criticise  in  his  doctrine  than  in  his  methods. 
There  will  be  do  disposition  to  prejudice  him,  but  an  earnest  wish 
that  the  governmental  policies  for  which  he  and  his  party  stand 
may  be  tested  upon  their  merits. 


HIGH  TAEIFF  DOOMED. 

In  his  speech  at  Buffalo,  the  last  speech  that  he  made,  Presi- 
dent McKinley  sounded  the  death-knell  of  a  high  tariff.     He  said : 

We  have  a  vast  and  intricate  business,  built  up  through  years 
of  toil  and  struggle,  in  which  every  part  of  the  country  has  its  stake, 
which  will  not  permit  of  either  neglect  or  of  undue  selfishness.  No 
narrow,  sordid  policy  will  subserve  it.  The  greatest  skill  and 


256  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

wisdom  on  the  part  of  the  manufacturers  and  producers  will  be 
required  to  hold  and  increase  it.  Our  industrial  enterprises,  which 
have  grown  to  such  great  proportions,  affect  the  homes  and  occu- 
pations of  the  people  and  the  welfare  of  the  country.  Our  capacity 
to  produce  has  developed  so  enormously  and  our  products  have  so 
multiplied  that  the  problem  of  more  markets  requires  our  urgent 
and  immediate  attention.  Only  a  broad  and  enlightened  policy 
will  keep  what  we  have.  No  other  policy  will  get  more.  In  these 
times  of  marvelous  business  energy  and  gain  we  ought  to  be  looking 
to  the  future,  strengthening  the  weak  places  in  our  industrial  and 
commercial  systems,  that  we  may  be  ready  for  any  storm  or  strain. 

By  sensible  trade  arrangements  which  will  not  interrupt  our 
home  production  we  shall  extend  our  outlets  for  our  increasing 
surplus.  A  system  which  provides  a  mutual  exchange  of  com- 
modities is  manifestly  essential  to  the  continued,  healthful  growth 
of  our  export  trade.  We  must  not  repose  in  fancied  security 
that  we  can  forever  sell  everything  and  buy  little  or  nothing.  If 
such  a  thing  were  possible  it  would  not  be  best  for  us  or  for  those 
with  whom  we  deal.  We  should  take  from  our  customers  such  of 
their  products  as  we  can  use  without  harm  to  our  industries  and 
labor.  Reciprocity  is  the  natural  outgrowth  of  our  wonderful 
industrial  development  under  the  domestic  policy  now  firmly  estab- 
lished. What  we  produce  beyond  our  domestic  consumption  must 
have  a  vent  abroad.  The  excess  must  be  relieved  through  a  foreign 
outlet,  and  we  should  sell  everywhere  we  can  and  buy  wherever  the 
buying  will  enlarge  our  sales  and  productions,  and  thereby  make 
a  greater  demand  for  home  labor. 

The  period  of  exclusiveness  is  past.  The  expansion  of  our 
trade  and  commerce  is  the  pressing  problem.  Commercial  wars 
are  unprofitable.  A  policy  of  good  will  and  friendly  trade  relations 
will  prevent  reprisals.  Reciprocity  treaties  are  in  harmony  with 
the  spirit  of  the  times ;  measures  of  retaliation  are  not. 

"The  period  of  exclusiveness  is  past."  That  means  that  our 
country  must  enter  the  markets  of  the  world,  and  when  it  does  so 
it  will  be  absurd  to  talk  about  needing  protection  from  foreigners. 
When  we  sell  abroad,  the  freight  must  be  added  to  the  price — we 
must  sell  at  the  foreign  price,  less  the  freight.  In  other  words, 
we  have  the  advantage  of  double  freight  when  we  sell  at  home. 
When  it  is  admitted  that  we  can  pay  the  freight  and  compete 
with  foreigners,  no  one  will  have  the  audacity  to  ask  for  a  high 
tariff  to  protect  domestic  manufacturers  against  foreign  competi- 
tion. 

Mr.  McKinley's  statement  that  we  cannot  sell  everything  and 
buy  nothing  is  an  axiom,  but  it  will  shock  the  high  tariff  advocates 
who  have  gone  on  the  theory  that  we  ought  to  sell  to  everybody  and 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  257 

buy  of  nobody.  But  the  President's  speech  suggests  one  melancholy 
thought.  Tariff  reform  is  about  the  only  thing  the  re-organizers 
favor  that  is  democratic  and  it  would  be  really  cruel  if  the  republi- 
cans should  abandon  protection  and  leave  the  re-organizers  no 
issue  at  all. 


FEEEDOM  OF  SPEECH. 

Some  of  the  republican  papers  are  suggesting  limitations  upon 
the  freedom  of  speech  as  a  cure  for  anarchy.  The  editor  of  THE 
COMMONER  has  as  much  reason  as  any  living  man  to  know  of 
the  abuse  sometimes  heaped  upon  candidates  for  office.  He  has 
been  the  victim  of  as  much  malice  and  vituperation  as  have  ever 
been  employed  against  an  American,  and  yet  he  is  opposed  to 
placing  any  additional  restriction  upon  the  freedom  of  speech  or 
the  freedom  of  the  press. 

First,  because  the  evils  of  restriction  are  greater  than  the  evils 
of  freedom,  and,  second,  because  abuse  does  not  hurt  the  man  or 
the  party  made  the  subject  of  attack.  The  death  of  President  Mc- 
Kinley  cannot  be  traced  to  anything  ever  spoken  or  written  against 
him.  The  assassin  spoke  affectionately  of  his  victim  and  said 
that  he  killed  him  not  because  of  his  dislike  for  the  man,  but 
because  of  his  opposition  to  government  of  any  kind.  Some  who 
are  engaged  in  schemes  which  will  not  bear  the  light  will  shield 
themselves  behind  the  murderous  deed  of  the  assassin  and  denounce 
freedom  of  speech  because  they  do  not  want  the  public  to  be  in- 
formed of  their  doings.  Others,  stirred  by  a  righteous  indigna- 
tion, strike  at  free  speech  because  some  have  abused  the  latitude 
allowed.  It  is  time  for  liberty-loving  citizens  to  protest  against 
the  attempt  to  suppress  free  speech.  The  warfare  must  be  against 
anarchy,  not  against  freedom  of  speech.  Anarchy  is  an  European 
product  and  thrives  most  where  there  is  least  freedom  of  speech 
and  least  freedom  of  the  press.  Let  us  not  make  the  mistake  of 
undermining  our  institutions  under  the  delusion  that  we  are  thus 
protecting  those  institutions. 

Free  speech  and  free  press  are  essential  to  free  government. 
No  man  in  public  life  can  object  to  the  publication  of  the  truth 
and  no  man  in  public  life  is  permanently  injured  by  the  publica- 
tion of  a  lie.  That  much  is  published  that  should  not  be  is  only 
too  evident,  but  let  public  opinion  correct  the  evil;  that  will  be 


258  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

more  effective  than  law  and  will  bring  no  danger  with  it.  If  a 
paper  abuses  a  political  opponent  stop  your  subscription  and  teach 
the  editor  to  conduct  his  paper  on  respectable  lines.  There  is  a 
sense  of  justice  in  the  human  heart  and  he  who  violates  it  violates 
it  at  his  own  peril.  This  sense  of  justice  ultimately  turns  abuse 
to  the  benefit  of  the  man  abused.  The  present  laws  against  slan- 
der and  libel  are  sufficient;  leave  the  rest  to  a  healthy  public 
sentiment — and  then  help  to  create  the  sentiment. 


THE  TURNING  POINT. 

Theodore  Eoosevelt  has  reached  the  turning  point  in  his 
political  career.  For  several  years  he  has  cherished  the  ambition 
to  be  President;  when  he  was  offered  the  nomination  for  Vice- 
President  last  year  he  hesitated  to  accept  it  for  fear  that  it  might 
interfere  with  his  desire  to  reach  the  first  place.  Ever  since  his 
inauguration  he  has  looked  forward  to  19'04  as  the  time  for  the 
realization  of  his  hopes.  He  expected  to  secure  the  nomination 
of  his  party,  but  he  knew  that  it  would  be  secured,  if  secured  at 
all,  at  the  end  of  a  spirited  contest.  All  at  once,  as  the  result 
of  an  assassin's  shot,  he  was  ushered  into  the  Presidency.  His 
fondest  aspirations  have  been  realized ;  the  highest  honor  within  the 
gift  of  the  people  in  any  land  is  now  his.  With  what  spirit  will 
he  enter  upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties?  The  answer  to  this 
question  is  of  tremendous  importance  to  him  and  to  his  country. 
He  has  three  years  and  one-half  in  which  to  show  the  American 
people  his  conception  of  official  duty.  Will  he  be  content  to  devote 
himself  unselfishly  to  the  public  good  as  he  sees  it,  or  will  he  begin 
to  plan  for  the  capture  of  the  next  republican  convention?  Will 
he  decide  all  controversies  with  an  eye  single  to  the  nation's  welfare, 
or  will  the  advancement  of  his  own  political  fortune  be  uppermost 
in  his  mind?  When  Mr.  Cleveland  accepted  the  democratic 
nomination  in  1884,  he  said : 

When  an  election  to  office  shall  be  the  selection  by  the  voters 
of  one  of  their  number  to  assume  for  a  time  a  public  trust  instead 
of  his  dedication  to  the  profession  of  politics;  when  the  holders 
of  the  ballot,  quickened  by  a  sense  of  duty,  shall  avenge  truth 
betrayed  and  pledges  broken,  and  when  the  suffrage  shall  be 
altogether  free  and  uncorrupted,  the  full  realization  of  a  govern- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  259 

ment  by  the  people  will  be  at  hand.  And  of  the  means  to  this  end, 
not  one  would,  in  my  judgment,  be  more  effective  than  an  amend- 
ment to  the  Constitution  disqualifying  the  president  from  re- 
election. 

When  we  consider  the  patronage  of  this  great  office,  the 
allurements  of  power,  the  temptation  to  retain  public  office  once 
gained,  and,  more  than  all,  the  availability  a  party  finds  in  an 
incumbent  whom  a  horde  of  office-holders,  with  zeal  born  of  benefits 
received  and  fostered  by  the  hope  of  favors  yet  to  come,  stand  ready 
to  aid' 'with  money  and  trained  political  service,  we  recognize  in 
the  eligibility  of  a  president  for  re-election  a  most  serious  danger  to 
that  calm,  deliberate  and  intelligent  political  action  which  must 
characterize  a  government  by  the  people. 

Mr.  Cleveland  would  have  stood  better  in  history  and  his 
party  would  have  been  benefitted  if  he  had  followed  his  own  advice 
and  declined  a  second  term,  but  his  acceptance  of  a  renomination 
only  proved  the  strength  of  the  influences  against  which  he  warned 
his  countrymen. 

If  Mr.  Koosevelt  desires  republican  authority  on  this  subject, 

he  can  find  it  in  the  letter  of  acceptance  of  Mr.  Hayes  in  1876. 
He  said: 

The  declaration  of  principles  by  the  Cincinnati  convention 
makes  no  announcement  in  favor  of  a  single  presidential  term. 
I  do  not  assume  to  add  to  that  declaration,  but  believing  that  the 
restoration  of  the  civil  service  to  the  system  established  by  Wash- 
ington and  followed  by  the  early  presidents  can  be  best  accomplished 
by  an  executive  officer  who  is  under  no  temptation  to  use  the 
patronage  of  his  office  to  promote  his  own  re-election,  I  desire  to 
perform  what  I  regard  as  a  duty  in  stating  now  my  inflexible 
purpose,  if  elected,  not  to  be  a  candidate  for  election  to  a  second 
term. 

President  Hayes  adhered  to  his  determination  and  his  party 
was  stronger  in  1880  than  it  was  in  1876. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  will  find  that  there  are  many  things  that  "can 
be  best  accomplished  by  an  executive  officer  who  is  under  no  tempta- 
tion to  use  the  patronage  of  his  office  to  promote  his  own  re- 
election." If  he  will  announce  his  determination  not  to  be  a 
candidate  for  renomination,  he  will  be  relieved  of  a  great  deal  of 
embarrassment  and  anxiety,  and  he  will  find  sufficient  "strenuous 
life"  in  an  effort  to  make  his  administration  conspicuous  for  its 
honesty  and  efficiency.  If  he  intends  to  appear  before  the  next 
republican  convention  as  a  candidate  he  must  prepare  to  fight  the 


260  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

bosses  of  his  party  or  to  surrender  to  them.  He  is  aware  of  the 
fact  that  the  republican  organization  did  not  look  with  favor 
upon  his  candidacy;  he  was  thought  too  independent.  If  he  is 
independent  and  does  his  own  thinking  he  will  alienate  those 
gentlemen  (it  is  not  necessary  to  name  them)  who  insist  upon 
controlling  political  affairs  in  their  various  sections.  There  is 
one  question  which  President  Roosevelt  will  have  to  meet  upon 
which  his  course  is  likely  to  be  determined  by  his  ambition.  If  he 
is  going  to  seek  another  term,  he  will  find  it  difficult  to  antagonize 
the  great  corporations  which  are  rapidly  securing  a  monopoly  of 
the  nation's  industries,  for  the  trust  magnates  are  influential 
in  republican  conventions  and  their  contributions  are  helpful  during 
campaigns.  The  financiers  will  insist  upon  controlling  the  finan- 
cial policy  of  his  administration  and  their  threats  will  be  potent 
if  he  must  pass  through  a  republican  convention  before  he  can 
get  to  the  people  for  an  endorsement,  but  their  fury  will  be  of 
no  avail  if  he  is  content  with  the  record  made  during  the  present 
term. 

Scarcely  a  day  will  pass  but  that  he  will  have  to  decide  between 
himself  and  the  people.  What  will  his  decision  be?  Three  years 
and  a  half  of  work  as  a  conscientious,  earnest  and  brave  defender 
of  the  interests  of  the  people  would  win  for  him  more  real  glory 
than  seven  years  and  a  half  devoted  to  the  advancement  of  his  own 
interests — the  first  half  spent  in  contracting  obligation  with  in- 
fluential men  and  corporations  and  the  second  half  spent  in  dis- 
charging the  obligations  at  the  expense  of  the  people. 

President  Roosevelt  has  reached  the  parting  of  the  ways ;  which 
road  will  he  take  ? 


ANOTHER  PROBLEM. 

By  way  of  London,  the  information  comes  to  the  United 
States  that  the  Danish  Ministry  "has  decided  to  accept  the  LTnitfd 
States'  offer  of  16,000,000  kroner  for  the  Danish  West  Indies." 
This  sum  represents,  in  our  money,  about  $3,500,000.  If  this  offer 
has  been  made,  it  has  been  made  by  the  executive,  because  it  is 
not  recalled  that  congress  has  given  authority  for  any  such  propo- 
sition to  be  made.  Is  this  another  case  where  Providence  will 
have  dropped  the  Danish  West  Indies  into  our  possession?  It 
will  be  interesting  to  observe  the  position  to  which  the  adminis- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  261 

tration  politicians  will  relegate  these  new  possessions  after  we  have 
paid  our  $3,500,000  and  have  obtained  the  transfer  of  the  title. 
Will  they  become  by  a  mere  purchase  a  part  of  the  great  American 
Empire?  Will  they  be  domestic  or  foreign  territory?  Will  they 
become  an  integral  part  of  the  Union  with  their  inhabitants 
entitled  to  all  the  rights,  privileges  and  immunities  that  old- 
fashioned  people  thought  our  Constitution  guaranteed  to  all  men 
under  our  flag,  or  will  they  be  mere  colonists,  subject  to  the  whims 
and  caprices  of  American  politicians?  It  is  presumed  that  if  the 
President  concludes  to  make  this  purchase,  he  assumes  to  act  under 
the  clause  providing  that  the  President  by  and  with  the  consent  of 
the  senate  may  make  treaties.  We  may  soon  be  confronted  with 
the  problem  as  to  what  position  the  Danish  West  Indies  will  occupy 
with  relation  to  the  United  States. 


DOLLIVEK  ON  ANARCHY. 

Senator  Dolliver,  of  Iowa,  made  a  speech  at  the  Memorial 
Services,  held  in  Chicago,  on  Sunday,  September  22.  In  the 
course  of  his  remarks  he  took  occasion  to  discuss  two  phases  of 
the  question  of  anarchy,  or  rather,  two  remedies.  Some  seem  to 
think  that  anarchy  cannot  be  suppressed  without  limiting  the 
freedom  of  speech  and  the  freedom  of  the  press.  It  is  refresh- 
ing to  find  one  so  eminent  in  the  republican  party  as  Mr.  Dolliver 
challenging  this  dangerous  doctrine.  He  says: 

A  government  like  ours  is  always  slow  to  move,  and  often 
awkward  in  its  motions,  but  it  can  be  trusted  to  find  effective 
remedies  for  conditions  like  these,  at  least  after  they  become  in- 
tolerable. But  these  remedies,  in  order  to  become  effective,  must 
not  evade  the  sense  of  justice  which  is  universal,  nor  the  traditions 
of  civil  liberty,  which  we  have  inherited  from  our  fathers.  The 
bill  of  rights  written  in  the  English  language,  stands  for  too 
many  centuries  of  sacrifice,  too  many  battlefields  sanctified  by 
blood,  too  many  hopes  of  mankind  reaching  toward  the  ages  to 
come,  to  be  mutilated  in  the  least  in  order  to  meet  the  case  of  a 
handful  of  miscreants  whose  names  nobody  can  pronounce. 

Anarchy  can  be  overcome  without  impairing  the  liberties  of 
the  people  or  trenching  upon  those  rights  which  are  essential  to 
the  republic.  His  suggestions  go  further  than  temporary  suppres- 


262  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

sion  of  anarchy.     He  deals  with  some  of  the  causes  which  lead 
up  to  and  develop  the  spirit  of  anarchy.     He  says : 

It  ought  not  to  be  forgotten  that  conspirators,  working  out 
their  nefarious  plans  in  secret  in  the  dens  and  caves  of  the  earth, 
enjoy  an  unconscious  co-operation  and  side  partnership  with  every 
lawless  influence  abroad  in  the  world.  Legislatures  who  betray 
the  commonwealth,  judges  who  poison  the  fountains  of  justice, 
city  governments  which  come  to  terms  with  crime — all  these  are 
regular  contributors  to  the  campaign  fund  of  anarchy. 

There  is  food  for  thought  in  what  Senator  Dolliver  says.  Law- 
lessness in  high  places  breeds  lawlessness  among  less  conspicuous 
individuals,  and  it  will  be  difficult  to  teach  the  humbler  mem- 
bers of  society  respect  for  law  and  government  if  there  are  men 
or  corporations  so  great  that  they  can  with  impunity  defy  the 
law  and  the  authority  of  the  government. 

The  senator  also  refers  to  the  burnings  which  have  taken  place 
in  several  sections  of  the  union,  and  declares  that  they  do  not 
contribute  to  the  safety  of  society.  Lynch  law  is  either  a  reflec- 
tion upon  the  government  or  it  is  an  indication  of  unrestrained 
passion  upon  the  part  of  the  mob.  If  the  government  is  efficiently 
administered,  there  is  no  occasion  to  resort  to  lynch  law,  and  if 
it  is  not  efficiently  administered,  it  is  better  to  reform  the  govern- 
ment than  to  set  aside  its  authority. 

But  when  the  mob,  not  satisfied  with  taking  the  life  of  the  vic- 
tim, adds  torture,  it  betrays  a  brutality  that  shames  our  civiliza- 
tion. The  assaults  upon  women  which  have  been  the  cause  of 
most  of  the  burnings,  are  indescribably  wicked,  but  it  is  enough 
that  the  guilty  party  should  atone  for  the  deed  with  his  life.  The 
taking  of  a  human  life,  even  in  the  enforcement  of  laws  of  society, 
is  a  grave  and  serious  thing.  To  torture  a  human  being  to  death 
amid  shouts  of  revenge  is  debasing  and  cannot  but  result  in- 
juriously to  society. 

The  assassination  of  the  President  will  bring  about  a  discussion 
of  lawlessness  and  lead  to  an  investigation  of  the  influences  which 
lead  to  lawlessness. 

Senator  Dolliver  has  gone  deeper  into  the  subject  than  many 
of  the  republican  editors  who  have  sought  to  hide  their  own  re- 
sponsibility behind  columns  of  partisan  abuse.  He  is  to  be  con- 
gratulated upon  the  courage  which  he  has  manifested  and  the 
breadth  of  view  he  has  shown. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  263 


XIII. 
NEBRASKA  DEMOCEATS  FIRM. 

The  Democratic  State  Convention,  held  at  Lincoln,  September 
17,  adopted  a  strong  platform  endorsing  the  principles  of  the 
Kansas  City  platform,  and  nominated  one  candidate  for  Supreme 
Judge  and  two  candidates  for  regents  of  State  University.  The 
convention  was  one  of  the  largest  ever  held  in  the  state.  The 
populists  met  at  the  same  time  and  the  ticket  named  was  agreed 
upon  by  both  conventions.  The  candidate  for  the  bench,  Judge 
Conrad  Hollenbeck,  is  a  Democrat  and  J.  H.  Bayston  and  L.  G. 
Hawksby,  candidates  for  regents,  are  Populists.  The  fusion  com- 
mittees expect  to  get  out  a  full  vote  and  elect  the  entire  ticket. 
Mr.  Bryan  had  not  met  the  representatives  of  the  two  parties 
since  the  last  presidential  election.  In  addressing  the  conven- 
tions he  avoided  partisan  politics  owing  to  the  death  of  the  Presi- 
dent. In  the  course  of  his  remarks  he  said  that  the  loss  of  the 
state  brought  more  humiliation  to  him  than  the  national  defeat 
(not  that  he  regretted  it  more,  as  some  papers  reported).  He 
said  that  he  would  remain  a  citizen  of  Nebraska  and  help  win 
back  the  state. 


ROOSEVELT  ON  TRUSTS. 

In  his  speech  at  Minneapolis  on  Labor  Day,  President  Roose- 
velt said: 

More  and  more  it  is  evident  that  the  state,  and  if  necessary 
the  nation,  has  got  to  possess  the  right  of  supervision  and  control 
as  regards  the  great  corporations  which  are  its  creatures,  particu- 
larly as  regards  the  great  business  combinations  which  derive  a 
portion  of  their  importance  from  the  existence  of  some  monopo- 
listic tendency. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  was  then  Vice-President  and  as  such  had  little 
influence  in  shaping  the  policy  of  his  party.  He  is  now  President 
and  in  a  position  to  give  force  and  effect  to  his  views  on  the  trust 


264  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

question.  As  the  Chief  Executive  it  is  his  duty  to  enforce -the 
law  as  he  finds  it.  If  the  present  Attorney-General  is  not  willing 
to  carry  out  his  instructions  he  can  demand  his  resignation  and 
appoint  a  new  Attorney-General.  He  can  give  no  excuse  for  a 
failure  to  enforce  the  law.  When  he  was  exercising  authority  in 
Xew  York  City  he  took  the  position  that  a  law  ought  either  to 
be  enforced  or  repealed.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  he  will  take  the 
same  position  now. 

Not  only  is  he  in  control  of  the  Executive  Branch  of  the  gov- 
ernment, but  he  has  a  Senate,  House  and  Supreme  Court  in 
political  harmony  with  him.  If  existing  laws  are  not  sufficient, 
he  has  the  power  of  recommendation  and  can  propose  measures 
sufficiently  severe  to  give  to  the  people  the  protection  which  he 
admits  to  be  needed.  It  will  be  interesting  to  watch  the  new 
President  and  see  whether  the  hostility  to  trusts  manifested  by  him 
when  he  was  laying  his  plans  to  capture  the  next  republican  con- 
vention is  increased  or  lessened  by  the  responsibilities  of  the  office 
to  which  he  aspired. 


AN  EXAMPLE  OF  PARTISANSHIP. 

Many  of  the  republican  papers  have  been  denouncing  those 
who  criticised  the  administration,  and  some  have  gone  so  far  as 
to  charge  that  the  murder  was  inspired  by  the  abuse  directed 
against  the  President.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  very  little  has  been 
said  against  the  personal  character  of  Mr.  McKinley,  and  it  is 
evident  from  the  statement  made  by  the  assassin  that  he  was  not 
actuated  by  any  hatred  of  the  man  or  even  by  lack  of  respect  for 
him.  The  blow  was  aimed  at  the  government  and  could  not  have 
resulted  from  anything  that  was  ever  said  or  written  about  the 
President.  However,  while  the  republicans  are  finding  fault  with 
the  language  employed  by  democrats  or  populists  who  have  criti- 
cised officials  and  candidates,  it  may  be  worth  while  to  recall  the 
fact  that  the  republicans  have  gone  far  beyond  the  democrats  in 
personal  abuse.  For  the  present,  one  illustration  will  suffice. 
The  Xew  York  Tribune,  once  edited  by  Horace  Greeley  and  now 
owned  by  a  man  who  came  near  being  Yice-President  of  the  United 
States,  contained  the  following  critical  editorial  just  after  the 
election  of  1896: 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  265 

The  thing  was  conceived  in  iniquity  and  was  brought  forth 
in  sin.  It  had  its  origin  in  a  malicious  conspiracy  against  the 
honor  and  integrity  of  the  nation.  It  gained  such  monstrous 
growth  as  it  enjoyed  from  an  assiduous  culture  of  the  basest 
passions  of  the  least  worthy  members  of  the  community.  It  has 
been  defeated  and  destroyed  because  right  is  right  and  God  is 
God.  Its  nominal  head  was  worthy  of  the  cause.  Nominal, 
because  the  wretched,  rattle-pated  boy,  posing  in  vapid  vanity  and 
mouthing  resounding  rottenness,  was  not  the  real  leader  of  the 
league  of  hell.  He  was  only  a  puppet  in  the  blood-imbued  hands 
of — the  anarchist  and — the  revolutionist  and  other  desperadoes 
of  that  stripe.  But  he  was  a  willing  puppet,  Bryan  was,  willing 
and  eager.  Not  one  of  his  masters  was  more  apt  than  he  at  lies, 
forgeries  and  blasphemies  and  all  the  nameless  iniquities  of  that 
campaign  against  the  Ten  Commandments.  He  goes  down  with 
the  cause,  and  must  abide  with  it  in  the  history  of  infamy. 

This  is  one  of  the  utterances  of  the  republican  press  that 
objects  to  the  criticism  of  republican  officials  or  republican  can- 
didates. 


NO  TIME  FOR  DESPAIR. 

The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  has  recently  received  a  letter 
from  a  democrat  who,  feeling  that  his  efforts  have  been  fruitless, 
is  inclined  to  hibernate  for  a  while  and  take  no  interest  in  public 
affairs. 

While  this  is  the  only  letter  of  the  kind  received,  it  probably 
reflects  the  feelings  of  a  considerable  number  of  persons  who  have 
labored  long  and  earnestly  in  behalf  of  reforms  without  being  able 
to  note  the  progress  which  they  hoped  for  and  had  reason  to  ex- 
pect. It  is  not  unnatural  that  a  period  of  enthusiasm  and  earnest- 
ness should  be  followed  by  a  period  of  depression  and  despondency. 
Even  the  best  of  men  have  sometimes  halted  and  hesitated  in 
the  prosecution  of  a  noble  cause.  Elijah,  one  of  the  most  coura- 
geous of  the  prophets  of  the  olden  time,  once  became  discouraged, 
but  the  Lord  revived  his  drooping  spirits  by  showing  him  that  there 
were  thousands  who  had  not  "bowed  the  knee  to  Baal." 

So  reformers  can  take  courage  to-day,  for  although  the  enemy 
is  even  more  strongly  entrenched  than  we  thought,  there  are  mil- 
lions who  are  still  loyal  to  Jeffersonian  principles,  and  still  in- 
terested in  reforming  the  abuses  which  have  grown  up  under  re- 
publican rule. 


266  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  fight  must  be  continued.  Whether  the  battle  be  long  or 
short,  it  is  the  duty  of  every  citizen  to  think  for  himself,  form 
his  own  convictions,  and  then  stand  by  his  opinion,  confident 
that  the  right  will  finally  triumph  and  that  truth  will  ultimately 
prevail.  There  is  comfort  and  inspiration  in  Bryant's  "Battle 
Meld." 


FACTS  AEE  STUBBORN  THINGS. 

Under  the  above  caption  the  New  York  World  attempts  to 
disprove  a  statement  made  in  a  recent  issue  of  THE  COMMONER. 
It  says: 

Mr.  Bryan  would  be  a  greater  success  as  a  controversial  writer 
if  he  were  to  cultivate  a  larger  respect  for  facts — especially  facts 
of  record.  In  his  COMMONER  he  says  that  "Mr.  Cleveland  used 
the  patronage  of  his  high  office  to  force  through  a  republican 
measure — the  unconditional  repeal  bill." 

It  was  the  Sherman  silver  purchase  law  which  was  a  "repub- 
lican measure."  It  was  passed  exclusively  by  republican  votes, 
not  a  single  democrat  voting  for  it.  The  repeal  act  was  a  demo- 
cratic measure  though  passed  by  the  help  of  republican  votes. 
The  national  democratic  platform  adopted  at  Chicago  in  1892  thus 
characterized  it : 

"We  denounce  the  republican  legislation  known  as  the  Sherman 
act  of  1890  as  a  cowardly  makeshift,  fraught  with  possibilities 
of  danger  in  the  future,  which  should  make  all  its  supporters,  as 
well  as  its  author,  anxious  for  its  speedy  repeal." 

The  "possibilities  of  danger"  were  realized  in  the  summer  of 
1893,  when  the  enforced  inflation  of  Che  currency  with  steadily 
depreciating  dollars  contributed  to,  if  it  did  not  wholly  cause,  the 
disastrous  panic  of  that  year.  President  Cleveland  simply  fulfilled 
the  promise  of  the  national  platform  in  calling  congress  together 
to  repeal  this  disaster-breeding  law,  and  its  unconditional  repeal 
was  largely  due  to  the  inflexible  determination  and  the  parlia- 
mentary skill  of  the  senior  democratic  senator  from  this  state — 
David  B.  Hill.  Mr.  Cleveland's  only  mistake  was  in  not  calling 
congress  together  at  once — in  March — to  secure  the  "speedy  repeal" 
as  promised,  instead  of  waiting  until  August,  when  the  panic  was 
beyond  control. 

Even  Mr.  Bryan's  fountain  pen  cannot  rewrite  history. 

THE  COMMONER  reiterates  its  statement  that  the  Uncondi- 
tional Repeal  Bill  which  Mr.  Cleveland  forced  through  by  the 
use  of  patronage  was  a  republican  measure,  and  for  proof  it  points 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 


267 


to  the  bill  itself.  Below  will  be  found  in  parallel  columns  a  bill 
introduced  by  Senator  Sherman  and  the  bill  introduced  by  Mr. 
Wilson  at  the  request  of  Mr.  Cleveland: 


Fifty-second  Congress,  first  ses- 
sion. S.  3423,  introduced  in 
the  senate  July  14,  1892,  by 
Mr.  Sherman. 

A  bill  for  the  repeal  of  certain 
parts  of  the  act  directing  the 
purchase  of  silver  bullion  and 
the  issue  of  treasury  notes 
thereon,  and  for  other  pur- 

?oses,     approved     July     14, 
890. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  senate 
and  house  of  representatives  of 
tlie  United  States  of  America 
in  congress  assembled,  That  so 
much  of  the  act  entitled  "An 
act  directing  the  purchase  of 
silver  bullion  and  the  issue  of 
treasury  notes  thereon,  and  for 
other  purposes,"  approved  July 
14,  1890,  as  directs  the  secre- 
tary of  the  treasury  to  purchase, 
from  time  to  time,  silver  bullion 
to  the  aggregate  amount  of 
4,500,000  ounces,  or  so  much 
thereof  as  may  be  offered  in 
each  month,  at  the  market  price 
thereof,  and  to  issue  in  payment 
for  such  purchases  of  silver 
bullion  treasury  notes  of  the 
United  States;  is  hereby  re- 
pealed, to  take  effect  on  the  1st 
day  of  January,  1893 ;  Provided, 
That  this  act  shall  not  in  any 
way  affect  or  impair  or  change 
the  legal  qualities,  redemption 
or  use  of  the  treasury  notes 
issued  under  said  act. 


Fifty-third  Congress,  first  ses- 
sion. H.  E.  1,  introduced  in 
the  house  August  11,  1893, 
by  Mr.  Wilson. 

A  bill  to  repeal  a  part  of  an 
act,  approved  July  14,  1890, 
entitled  "An  act  directing  the 
purchase  of  silver  bullion  and 
the  issue  of  treasury  notes 
thereon,  and  for  other  pur- 
poses." 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  senate 
and  house  of  representatives  of 
the  United  States  of  America  in 
congress  assembled,  That  so 
much  of  the  act  approved  July 
14,  1890,  entitled  "An  act  di- 
recting the  purchase  of  silver 
bullion  and  issue  of  treasury 
notes  thereon,  and  for  other  pur- 
poses," as  directs  the  secretary 
of  the  treasury  to  purchase, 
from  time  to  time,  silver  bullion 
to  the  aggregate  amount  of 
4,500,000  ounces  or  so  much 
•thereof  as  may  be  offered  in 
each  month,  at  the  market  price 
thereof,  not  exceeding  $1  for 
371.25  grains  of  pure  silver,  and 
to  issue  in  payment  for  such 
purchases  treasury  notes  of  the 
United  States,  be,  and  the  same 
is  Hereby  repealed;  but  this  re- 
peal shall  not  impair  or  in  any 
manner  affect  the  legal  tender 
quality  of  the  standard  silver 
dollars  heretofore  coined;  and 
the  faith  and  credit  of  the 
United  States  are  hereby 
pledged  to  maintain  the  parity 
of  the  standard  gold  and  silver 
coins  of  the  United  States  at 
the  present  legal  ratio,  or  such 
other  ratio  as  may  be  established 
by  law. 


268  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

A  comparison  of  these  bills  will  convince  any  one  that  Mr. 
Cleveland  adopted  Mr.  Sherman's  bill,  and  Mr.  Sherman  was  not 
in  the  habit  of  introducing  democratic  measures. 

The  case  might  be  submitted  upon  this  evidence,  but  ad- 
ditional evidence  is  furnished  by  the  vote  in  the  House  and  Senate. 

A  larger  percentage  of  the  republicans  than  of  the  democrats 
voted  for  the  measure  urged  by  Mr.  Cleveland.  The  republicans 
are  not  in  the  habit  of  supporting  democratic  measures,  and  yet 
in  spite  of  the  natural  disposition  of  the  republicans  to  antagonize 
a  democratic  administration,  and  in  spite  of  the  natural  disposition 
of  democrats  to  support  a  democratic  administration,  Mr.  Cleve- 
land in  his  fight  for  unconditional  repeal  received  more  support 
from  the  republicans  than  from  his  own  party.  This  fact  alone 
would  be  sufficient  to  support  THE  COMMONER'S  charge ;  certainly, 
the  proof  brought  from  the  two  sources  above  mentioned  establishes 
the  proposition. 

But  this  is  not  all.  When  the  next  democratic  national 
convention  met  the  democrats  repudiated  the  position  taken  by 
Mr.  Cleveland  because  it  was  a  republican  position  and  incon- 
sistent with  democratic  principles  and  democratic  record,  and  the 
convention  did  this  in  spite  of  all  the  great  corporations  and  in 
spite  of  nearly  all  the  great  daily  papers. 

In  making  its  denial  the  World  relies  upon  a  garbled  extract 
from  the  democratic  platform  of  1892.  That  platform  denounced 
the  Sherman  law  as  a  cowardly  makeshift  and  declared  that  the 
democrats  "hold  to  the  use  of  both  gold  and  silver  as  the  standard 
money  of  the  country  and  to  the  coinage  of  both  gold  and  silver 
without  discrimination  against  either  metal  or  charge  for  mintage." 
A  makeshift  is  an  inferior  thing  that  Is  used  until  something  better 
can  be  secured.  To  denounce  the  Sherman  law  as  a  cowardly 
makeshift  would  have  been  absurd  if  the  convention  had  not 
pointed  out  the  better  thing,  namely,  bimetallism.  The  demo- 
cratic party  never  demanded  unconditional  repeal;  it  never  ap- 
proved of  the  President's  plan  of  putting  the  country  on  a  gold 
basis.  No  sensible  or  sane  man  could  have  construed  the  platform 
of  1892  so  as  to  support  Mr.  Cleveland's  course.  Mr.  Cleveland 
made  no  attempt  to  carry  out  the  platform;  he  made  no  effort 
to  conform  to  the  wishes  of  the  men  who  voted  for  him.  He 
was  apparently  under  some  secret  obligation  to  the  financiers  and 
proceeded  to  carry  out  their  plans  in  utter  disregard  of  the  pledges 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  269 

made  by  his  platform.  While  a  majority  of  the  men  who  voted 
for  him  believed  in  "the  coinage  of  both  gold  and  silver  without 
discrimination  against  either  metal  or  charge  for  mintage,"  he 
selected  a  cabinet,  every  member  of  which  was  opposed  to  that 
doctrine.  He  consulted  with  the  republican  financiers  more  than 
he  did  with  democratic  representatives,  and  he  rewarded  with 
lucrative  positions  several  congressmen  and  senators  who  were 
persuaded  by  him  to  betray  their  constituents.  He  even  promised 
some  that  he  would  favor  silver  legislation  as  soon  as  he  could  get 
the  Sherman  law  repealed,  and  yet,  at  the  request  of  New  York 
bankers,  he  vetoed  the  Seigniorage  Bill,  which  was  supported  by 
a  majority  of  the  democrats  in  both  the  House  and  Senate 
Many  of  the  democrats  who  had  been  persuaded  to  vote  for  the 
repeal  bill,  learned  to  their  surprise  that  Mr.  Cleveland  did  not 
intend  that  anything  should  be  done  to  rehabilitate  silver. 

Facts  are,  indeed,  stubborn  things  and  the  World  knows  these 
facts  because  it  was  in  the  thick  of  the  fight  and  was  as  active 
an  organ  as  the  money  power  had  during  that  memorable  contest. 

If  the  World  desires  to  defend  Mr.  Cleveland  it  can  do  so,  but 
it  ought  to  do  so  on  the  ground  that  it  thinks  the  republicans  were 
right  and  the  democrats  wrong,  not  on  the  ground  that  Mr.  Cleve- 
land supported  a  democratic  measure. 

The  World  gives  Mr.  Hill  credit  for  valiant  service  in  aiding 
the  passage  of  that  republican  measure.  Yes,  the  country  well 
remembers  how  the  interests  of  Wall  Street  brought  about  a  recon- 
ciliation between  Mr.  Cleveland  and  Mr.  Hill,  who  was  supposed 
to  be  Mr.  Cleveland's  most  bitter  political  enemy.  When  the 
financiers  said  dance,  the  Senator  from  New  York  chose  the  Presi- 
dent for  his  partner  and  they  waltzed  together  until  the  bill  be- 
came a  law.  No  contest  through  which  this  country  has  passed 
better  illustrated  the  almost  irresistible  power  of  organized  capi- 
tal. The  banks  coerced  the  borrowers  and  the  desks  of  the  mem- 
bers were  yellow  with  telegrams  that  poured  in  by  concerted  ac- 
tion from  the  money  centers.  The  democratic  party  was  first 
betrayed  and  then  disrupted  in  order  to  carry  out  the  financial 
plans  of  men  who  were  ready  to  leave  any  party  or  to  join  any 
party  according  as  their  pecuniary  interests  would  be  advanced. 

Facts  are  stubborn  things. 


270  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

THE  ASSASSIN  SENTENCED. 

Leon  F.  Czolgosz,  the  President's  Assassin,  has  been  sentenced 
to  death  and  will  be  electrocuted  at  the  Auburn  State  Prison  during 
the  week  beginning  October  28,  1901. 

The  only  statement  he  made  at  the  trial  was  made  just  before 
his  sentence  and  was:  "There  was  no  one  else  but  me,  no  one  else 
told  me  to  do  it.  I  was  not  told  anything  about  the  crime  and  1 
never  thought  anything  about  that  until  a  couple  of  days  before  I 
committed  the  crime." 

He  had  excellent  counsel  but  as  there  was  no  defense  to  be 
offered  and  nothing  that  could  be  said  in  palliation  of  his  act  the 
trial  was  brief.  He  will  now  have  a  month's  time  to  reflect 
upon  the  terrible  deed,  which  even  he  now  describes  as  a  crime,  and 
it  will  be  strange,  indeed,  if  meditation  does  not  awaken  his  dor- 
mant conscience. 


KIND  BUT  SUKPKISING. 

THE  COMMONER  does  not,  as  a  rule,  publish  the  kind  of  things 
said  about  its  editor  for  the  reason  that  he  does  not  desire  the 
paper  to  appear  to  be  a  defender  or  eulogist  of  him.  Occasion- 
ally, however,  it  becomes  necessary  to  use  the  paper  to  defend 
him  against  unjust  attack,  and  sometimes  a  word  of  commenda- 
tion is  published  for  the  purpose  of  commenting  upon  it. 

The  Topeka  Capital  recently  contained  the  following  editorial : 

The  Capital  has  never  had  any  prepossessions  favorable  to  W. 
J.  Bryan.  The  issues  he  has  stood  for  have  been  the  contradiction 
of  everything  this  paper  believes  in.  His  manner  and  method 
in  campaigns  have  seemed  to  us  better  calculated  to  divide  than 
unify  the  country  and  people,  to  set  section  against  section,  and 
destroy  sympathy  and  sense  of  fellowship  and  of  common  interest 
between  men  in  one  condition  of  life  and  men  in  another  condi- 
tion. We  were  just  beginning  as  a  party  in  Kansas  to  see  the 
money  question  in  its  true  light,  when  Bryan,  by  his  eloquence 
and  the  fiery  inspiration  of  his  personality  plunererl  n«s  into  a 
campaign  for  which  as  republicans  we  were  unprepared.  The  more 
we  saw  of  his  kind  of  statesmanship  the  less  we  thought  of  it. 

Mr.  Bryan's  political  opinions  are  no  better  to-dav  than  five 
vears  or  one  year  ago;  but  Mr.  Bryan's  personal  character  and 
his  patriotism  and  manly  nature  as  exhibited  by  his  comments 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  271 

and  conduct  since  the  assassination  of  his  successful  rival  have 
been  such  as  to  make  every  American  heart  warm  to  him.  His 
tributes  to  the  late  president  have  been  as  sincere  as  they  have 
been  just.  No  man  spoke  more  promptly  or  more  feelingly  when 
the  news  flashed  across  the  country  that  the  president  had  been 
struck  down  at  Buffalo;  and  no  man  bowed  his  head  in  more 
honest  sorrow  when  the  tidings  followed  of  his  death.  These 
manifestations  of  Mr.  Bryan's  goodness  of  heart  and  patriotism 
have  won  him  a  higher  place  in  the  respect  of  the  nation  as  a 
man  and  a  citizen  than  he  has  ever  held  in  the  past. 

The  kindly  spirit  which  pervades  the  above  editorial  is  duly 
appreciated,  but  attention  is  called  to  it  for  the  purpose  of  ask- 
ing why  democrats  are  so  misunderstood  by  their  opponents.  Cer- 
tainly republicans  had  a  right  to  expect,  not  only  from  Mr.  Bryan 
but  from  all  democrats,  sincere  sorrow  at  the  President's  death 
and  indignation  at  the  fact  that  it  came  through  the  act  of  an 
assassin.  It  was  to  be  expected  that  every  patriotic  citizen  would 
condemn  the  deed  and  the  doctrine  which  led  to  it,  as  well  as 
sympathize  with  the  members  of  the  stricken  family.  Neither 
should  it  be  a  matter  of  surprise  that  democrats  entertained  a 
respect  for  Mr.  McKinley's  many  personal  virtues,  or  were  touched 
by  the  scenes  which  attended  the  closing  moments  of  his  life. 

Democrats  and  republicans  differ  upon  public  questions,  and 
Mr.  Bryan  has  always  contended  that  this  difference  is,  for  the  most 
part,  an  honest  difference.  No  one  makes  a  greater  mistake  than 
he  who  assumes  that  any  considerable  portion  of  any  party  is 
unpatriotic  or  bent  upon  mischief.  The  democrats  have  not  at- 
tempted to  array  one  class  against  another.  It  became  neces- 
sary to  point  out  the  effect  of  republican  policies,  and,  as  is  always 
the  case,  those  policies  helped  some  people  and  injured  others. 
Mr.  Bryan  never  said  anything  on  the  silver  question  more  cal- 
culated to  array  class  against  class  than  Mr.  McKinley,  Mr.  Blaine, 
Mr.  Sherman  and  Mr.  Carlisle  had  said  before  him. 

That  a  rising  dollar  is  an  advantage  to  the  money  owner  is  a 
self-evident  truth,  and  that  it  is  hurtful  to  the  producers  of  wealth 
and  to  the  debtor  is  equally  plain.  That  a  national  bank  cur- 
rency is  a  good  thing  for  the  national  banker  is  apparent  to  any 
one,  and  that  it  is  dangerous  as  well  as  expensive  to  other  people 
ought  to  be  easily  understood.  The  democrats  believe  that  trusts 
and  imperialism  are  beneficial  to  a  portion  of  the  people  and 
injurious  to  the  masses.  It  is  impossible  to  discuss  public  ques- 


272  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

tions  without  pointing  out  the  effect  of  the  policies  upon  the  dif- 
ferent classes,  and  no  party  has  ever  employed  this  method  of 
argument  more  persistently  than  the  republican  party. 

Have  not  the  protectionists  appealed  to  the  sheep  raisers,  as  a 
class,  and  warned  them  against  free  wool?  Have  not  the  re- 
publicans posed  as  the  special  guardians  of  the  wage-earners,  and 
have  they  not  declaimed  about  the  home  market?  Have  they 
not  charged  the  democrats  with  favoring  low  tariff  for  the  benefit 
of  English  manufacturers  and  against  the  welfare  of  American 
producers?  Have  not  republican  papers  contended  that  demo- 
cratic policies  would  bring  idleness  to  the  wage-earners?  Did  not 
Mr.  McKinley  make  capital  out  of  a  banquet  given  Mr.  Wilson 
when  he  visited  England?  And  did  he  not  insist  that  his  party 
would  open  the  mills,  charging  inferentially  that  the  democratic 
party  had  closed  them? 

It  is  gratifying  to  know  that  many  republican  editors  have 
recently  begun  to  realize  what  they  seem  to  have  ignored,  namely, 
that  the  Democrats,  Populists  and  Silver  Kepublicans  are  earnestly 
endeavoring  to  secure  what  they  believe  to  be  needed  reform.  The 
members  of  these  three  parties  have  co-operated  on  paramount 
issues  while  they  differed  about  minor  ones;  they  have  defended 
their  convictions  and  will  continue  to  defend  them,  but  none  sur- 
pass them  in  devotion  to  their  nation's  interest  or  in  their  support 
of  the  constituted  authorities. 

In  view  of  all  that  lias  been  said  and  done,  is  it  not  strange 
that  any  republican  should  be  surprised  at  the  words  spoken  by 
Mr.  McKinley's  opponents  at  the  time  of  the  assassination? 
The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  is  greatly  obliged  to  the  Topeka 
Capital  for  its  compliment,  but  regrets  that  any  doubt  ever  ex- 
isted as  to  the  honesty  and  sincerity  of  himself  and  his  supporters 
in  recent  campaigns. 


THE  FAEM. 

As  the  daily  papers  have  seen  fit  to  make  some  comments 
upon  the  house  which  I  am  building,  it  may  not  be  out  of  place 
to  present  the  facts  to  the  readers  of  THE  COMMONER.  In  the 
spring  of  1893  I  purchased  five  acres  of  ground  about  three  miles 
southeast  of  Lincoln.  The  land  is  situated  on  the  top  of  a  beauti- 
ful knoll  overlooking  the  Antelope  valley.  The  view  from  this 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  273 

spot  is  unsurpassed;  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach  the  land  is  under 
cultivation  and  the  colors  change  with  the  crops  and  the  seasons. 

In  1897  twenty  acres  were  purchased  adjoining  the  original 
five,  and  in  1898  I  began  improving  the  place  by  setting  out  an 
orchard  and  shade  trees.  Since  then,  ten  acres  more  have  been 
added  so  that  the  farm  now  consists  of  thirty-five  acres.  Our 
only  son  is  past  twelve,  and  believing  that  life  on  a  farm  will 
be  beneficial  to  him  as  well  as  pleasant  to  the  rest  of  us,  we  are 
now  about  to  realize  the  plans  made  years  ago. 

The  first  day  of  October  was  the  seventeenth  anniversary  of 
our  marriage  and  the  fourteenth  anniversary  of  my  removal  from 
Illinois  to  Nebraska.  To  celebrate  this  double  anniversary  Mrs. 
Bryan  and  I  went  out  to  the  farm  on  that  day  and  helped  to  stake 
off  the  ground  for  the  house  and  took  out  the  first  shovelful  of  dirt. 
The  foundation  will  be  put  in  this  fall,  so  that  the  house  can  be 
completed  early  next  spring.  When  it  is  ready  for  occupancy 
a  picture  of  it  will  appear  in  THE  COMMONER — until  it  is  com- 
pleted the  plans  are  subject  to  change. 


THE  PAN-AMEKICAN  CONFEKENCE. 

The  Pan-American  conference  to  be  held  in  the  City  of  Mexico 
the  latter  part  of  this  month  is  of  great  importance  to  the  countries 
participating.  A  number  of  subjects  of  general  interest  will  be 
considered.  Probably  the  most  important  question  that  will  arise 
is  arbitration,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  representatives  of  the 
United  States  will  use  their  influence  to  secure  the  adoption  of 
the  resolutions  brought  before  the  last  Pan-American  conference 
by  Secretary  of  State  Blaine. 

They  were  as  follows: 

First.  That  the  principle  of  conquest  shall  not,  during  the 
continuance  of  the  treaty  of  arbitration,  be  recognized  as  admissible 
under  American  public  law. 

Second.  That  all  cessions  of  territory  made  during  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  treaty  of  arbitration  shall  be  void  if  made  under 
threats  of  war  or  in  the  presence  of  an  armed  force. 

Third.  Any  nation  from  which  such  cessions  shall  be  exacted 
may  demand  that  the  validity  of  the  cessions  so  made  shall  be 
submitted  to  arbitration. 

Fourth.     Any  renunciation  of  the  right  to  arbitration  made 


274  The.  Commoner  Condensed. 

under  the  conditions  named  in  the  seconcl  section  shall  be  null 
and  void. 

The  fact  that  the  Central  and  South  American  republics  have 
been  alarmed  by  the  recent -imperialistic  tendencies  of  the  admin- 
istration makes  it  especially  opportune  for  this  country  to  give 
the  assurance  which  such  resolutions  would  offer. 

It  would  also  be  worth  while  to  consider  the  propriety  of  inviting 
the  other  American  republics  to  adopt  our  ratio  between  gold  and 
silver  and  provide  for  the  issuance  of  coins  of  the  same  weight, 
fineness  and  denominations  as  ours.  This  would  facilitate  trade 
between  the  countries  of  the  western  hemisphere.  The  building 
and  protection  of  the  Nicaragua  Canal  by  the  United  States  is 
a  matter  of  great  importance  to  all  Pan-American  countries  and 
the  subject  should  of  course  be  considered. 

The  Monroe  doctrine  should  be  endorsed,  for  it  is  of  vital 
concern  to  the  republics  of  Central  and  South  America,  as  well  as 
to  the  United  States. 

There  are  other  questions  looking  to  the  establishment  of  better 
mail  facilities  and  better  trade  regulation  which  deserve  attention ; 
in  fact,  the  scope  of  the  meeting  is  so  great  that  it  would  be 
difficult  to  limit  the  discussion  to  particular  questions  named  in 
advance.  The  members  of  the  conference  ought  to  be  free  to  con- 
sider all  matters  of  interest  to  the  republics  represented. 


"UNCONSCIOUS  ANAKCHY." 

A  recent  issue  of  the  Rochester  Democrat  and  Chronicle  (why 
the  word  "Democrat"  should  be  a  part  of  the  paper's  title  is  a 
mystery)  contains  a  most  interesting  editorial  under  the  caption 
"Unconscious  Anarchy."  It  is  devoted  to  the  criticism  of  an 
editorial  which  appeared  in  THE  COMMONER  a  short  time  ago. 
The  Democrat  and  Chronicle  says : 

As  Mr.  Bryan  has  said  "our  form  of  government  is  the  best 
ever  devised" — for  a  people  capable  of  self-government.  The 
reason  that  it  is  the  best  devised  for  such  people  (and  the  worst 
ever  devised  for  people  unfitted  for  self-government)  is  that  it 
places  the  governing  power  unreservedly  in  the  hands  of  the 
people.  The  people  have  full  power,  except  as  it  is  limited  by 
the  fundamental  law,  to  govern  or  mis-govern  themselves  exactly 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  275 

as  they  please  and  they  can  alter  a  fundamental  law  whenever 
they  choose. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  Democrat  and  Chronicle  qualifies  Mr. 
Bryan's  statement  by  adding  the  words,  ""for  a  people  capable  of 
self-government." 

The  above  language  shows  the  standpoint  from  which  republi- 
cans are  beginning  to  view  the  subject  of  government.  Their 
attempt  to  misrepresent  democratic  doctrines  is  of  little  im- 
portance, and  their  conscious  and  constant  t'wisting  of  democratic 
arguments  does  not  deserve  attention.  But  the  increasing 
emphasis  with  which  they  denounce  the  principles  of  American 
government  is  worthy  of  serious  consideration.  This  doctrine  that 
some  people  are  capable  of  self-government  and  that  other  people 
are  incapable  of  it,  has  as  a  corollary  the  imperialistic  doctrine 
that  the  "capable"  people  should  assume,  as  matter  of  duty, 
the  government  of  the  incapable  ones,  and  of  course  while  the 
capable  ones  are  governing  the  incapable  ones,  the  incapable  ones 
must  pay  the  expenses  and  the  capable  ones  must  make  as  much 
profit  as  possible,  nationally  and  individually,  out  of  the  self- 
imposed  duty.  Public  attention  should  be  called  to  the  present 
attitude  of  the  republican  party,  and  its  position  should  be  com- 
pared with  the  position  taken  by  those  who  Have  been  regarded 
as  authority. 

Jefferson  in  his  first  Inaugural  Address  said:  "Sometimes  it 
is  said  that  man  cannot  be  trusted  with  the  governing  of  himself. 
Can  he,  then,  be  trusted  with  the  governing  of  olhers?  Or  have 
we  found  angels  in  the  form  of  kings  to  govern  him  ?  Let  history 
answer  this  question." 

If  republicans  are  unwilling  to  accept  the  authority  of  Thomas 
Jefferson,  they  ought  certainly  to  heed  tHe  words  of  Henry  Clay. 
The  whig  party  was  the  forerunner  of  the  republican  party,  and 
Abraham  Lincoln  was  one  of  Clay's  warmest  supporters.  In 
1818  Clay  made  a  speech  in  the  House  of  Eepresentatives  on  the 
emancipation  of  South  America  (see  the  World's  Best  Orations). 
In  the  course  of  his  argument  he  took  occasion  to  condemn  the 
very  sentiment  which  now  finds  expression  in  the  republican 
papers.  Here  are  his  words : 

It  is  the  doctrine  of  thrones,  that  man  is  too  ignorant  to  govern 
himself.  Their  partisans  assert  his  incapacity,  in  reference  to 


276  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

(all  nations;  if  they  cannot  command  universal  assent  to  the 
proposition,  it  is  then  demanded  to  particular  nations;  and  our 
pride  and  our  presumption  too  often  make  converts  of  us.  I 
contend,  that  it  is  to  arraign  the  dispositions  of  Providence  himself, 
to  suppose  that  he  has  created  beings  incapable  of  governing  them- 
selves, and  to  be  trampled  on  by  kings.  Self-government  is  the 
natural  government  of  man. 

If,  however,  the  republicans  want  some  more  recent  authority — 
authority  more  closely  identified  with  the  Eepublican  party — let 
them  turn  to  the  speech  made  by  Abraham  Lincoln  at  Chicago 
in  1858  and  they  will  find  there  a  complete  and  conclusive  answer 
to  such  a  sentiment  as  that  quoted  from  the  Democrat  and 
Chronicle. 

Lincoln  said: 

Those  arguments  that  are  made,  that  the  inferior  race  are  to 
be  treated  with  as  much  allowance  as  they  are  capable  of  enjoying, 
that  as  much  is  to  be  done  for  them  as  their  condition  will  allow — 
what  are  these  arguments?  They  are  the  arguments  that  kings 
have  made  for  enslaving  the  people  in  all  ages  of  the  world.  You 
will  find  that  all  the  arguments  in  favor  ol  kingcraft  were  of  this 
class;  they  always  bestrode  the  necks  of  the  people,  not  that  they 
wanted  to  do  it,  but  because  the  people  were  better  off  for  being 
ridden.  That  is  their  argument. 

What  a  fall  is  this!  The  self-evident  truths,  proclaimed  in 
the  beginning  of  our  nation's  history  and  revered  for  a  century 
and  a  quarter,  have  become  "unconscious  anarchy !"  They  must 
not  be  uttered  aloud  for  fear  they  will  stimulate  anarchy.  Was 
ever  a  party's  transformation  more  complete? 

If  one  says,  as  the  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  did,  "partiality 
in  government  kindles  discontent,  the  exaltation  of  money  above 
human  rights,  the  fattening  of  the  few  at  the  expense  of  the 
many,  the  making  of  artificial  distinctions  between  citizens  and 
the  lessening  of  the  sacredness  of  human  life — all  these  in  their 
full  development  encourage  the  anarchistic  spirit — "  is  he  guilty 
of  "unconscious  anarchy"  ?  The  Democrat  and  Chronicle  even 
finds  fault  with  the  declaration  that  "our  government  must  be  made 
as  good  as  intelligence  and  patriotism  can  make  it."  This,  also, 
is  "unconscious  anarchy." 

Anarchy  cannot  be  defended  under  any  circumstances,  and  no 
democrat  has  any  sympathy  with  it  or  toleration  for  it,  for  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  277 

word  "democrat"  nieans  that  the  people  rule;  it  is  not  chaos  that  ia 
desired,  but  "a  government  of  the  people,  by  the  people  and  for 
the  people."  But  a  democrat  not  only  believes  in  government, 
but  in  just  government,  and  he  will  not  be  deterred  from  pointing 
out  and  correcting  injustice  by  the  fear  that  some  one  will  carry 
his  discontent  to  the  point  of  despair.  What  is  "the  alternative? 
It  is  to  praise  evil  or  to  be  silent  in  its  presence.  It  is  to  encourage 
misrule  and  corruption;  it  is  to  bring  this  government  down  to 
the  condition  of  those  governments  in  which  oppression  is  so 
great  and  relief  so  remote  that  the  people  become  desperate.  To 
point  out  the  governmental  abuses  whicH  cause  anarchy  is  not  to 
justify  or  defend  anarchy.  A  disease  cannot  be  treated  until  the 
cause  is  ascertained.  To  charge  a  democrat  with  being  responsible 
for  anarchy  because  he  tries  to  apply  a  rational  and  permanent 
remedy  is  as  unfair  as  to  blame  a  physician  for  a  disease  which  he 
points  out  and  tries  to  cure. 

If  those  who  believe  in  self-government  and  who  want  to  make 
the  government  entirely  beneficent  are  to  be  charged  with  "un- 
conscious anarchy,"  of  what  are  they  guilty  who  pervert  govern- 
ment, profit  by  its  perversion  and  then  denounce  criticism  of  their 
misdeeds  ? 


CHRISTIAN  ADVOCATE  ON  TRUSTS. 

It  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  the  Christian  Advocate  should  ap- 
pear as  a  defender  of  the  trusts.  It  does  not  say  that  they  are 
good,  but  does  say:  "The  simple  facts  are  that  there  are  no 
trusts  in  the  country,  and  though  some  concerns  or  owners  are 
united  for  the  same  purpose,  they  are  not  trusts,  nor  have  they 
by  any  means  all  the  legal  powers  that  the  trusts  had."  After 
declaring  that  there  are  no  trusts  it  fails  to  condemn  private 
monopolies  in  the  form  in  which  they  now  appear.  It  simply 
says:  "Whether  some  way  of  regulating  the  size  of  such  corpora- 
tions can  be  devised  without  violating  essential  rights,  or  whether, 
if  possible,  it  should  be  done,  are  other  questions." 

The  readers  of  the  Christian  Advocate  have  reason  to  expect 
more  frankness  and  candor  than  are  shown  in  the  editorial  quoted. 
If  the  Advocate  believes  that  the  trusts  are  good,  it  ought  to  say 
so  and  attempt  to  defend  them.  If  it  believes  them  bad,  it  owes 
it  to  its  readers  to  condemn  them  and  point  out  a  remedy.  The 


278  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Advocate  will  find  it  difficult  to  support  the  trusts  system  without 
so  amending  the  commandment  as  to  make  it  read  "Thou  shalt 
not  steal — on  a  small  scale."  Trusts  steal  on  a  large  scale,  and 
cannot  be  justified  on  political  or  economic  grounds,  much  less 
on  religious  grounds. 


ME.  CUMMIXS'  ERROR 

In  a  speech  delivered  at  Centreville,  Iowa,  Mr.  Cummins,  the 
Republican  nominee  for  Governor,  said:  "Five  full  years  of  ex- 
perience have  approved  every  statement,  verified  every  argument 
and  vindicated  every  principle  asserted  by  the  Republicans." 

Let  us  take  a  glance  at  the  statements,  arguments  and  princi- 
ples asserted  by  the  Republican  party  in  1896. 

The  leaders  of  that  party  asserted  that  we  did  not  need  more 
money  and  yet  to-day,  after  "five  full  years  of  experience"  they 
boast  that  their  party  has  made  wonderful  increase  in  the  volume 
of  money. 

They  declared  that  the  policy  of  protection  was  "the  bulwark 
of  American  industrial  independence  and  the  fountain  of  American 
development  and  prosperity,"  and  yet  in  the  last  speech  delivered 
by  Mr.  McKinley,  that  great  Republican  leader  pointed  out  very 
clearly  that  the  Republican  position  on  the  question  must  be 
modified. 

That  platform  asserted  the  principle  of  bimetallism  by  inter- 
national agreement.  No  serious  effort  was  made  to  fulfill  the 
pledge  relating  to  international  bimetallism  and  after  "five  full 
years  of  experience"  the  Republican  position  of  international  bi- 
metallism in  1896  has  been  abandoned  for  the  Republican  posi- 
tion of  the  single  gold  standard  in  1901. 

That  platform  declared  that  the  Nicaraguan  canal  should  be 
built,  owned  and  operated  by  the  United  States,  and  yet  a  Re- 
publican secretary  of  state  after  several  "full  years  of  experience" 
sought  to  negotiate  a  treaty  in  which  much  of  the  practical  con- 
trol of  that  canal  would  have  been  surrendered  to  Great  Britain. 

That  platform  declared  that  "from  the  hour  of  achieving  their 
own  independence  the  people  of  the  United  States  have  regarded 
with  sympathy  the  struggles  of  other  American  people  to  free 
themselves  from  European  domination;"  and  yet  after  "five  full 
years  of  experience"  the  Republican  party  of  to-day  finds  itself 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  279 

in  a  position  where  it  dare  not  express  sympathy  with  the  struggles 
of  the  Dutchmen  of  South  Africa  to  free  themselves  from  Eu- 
ropean domination. 

That  platform  promised  to  the  American  workingmen  "protec- 
tion against  the  fatal  competition  of  low  priced  labor"  and  de- 
clared that  the  immigration  laws  should  be  thoroughly  enforced; 
and  yet  no  serious  effort  has  been  made  to  fulfill  this  pledge. 

That  platform  declared  in  favor  of  a  strict  enforcement  of  the 
principle  of  the  civil  service  law  and  after  one  or  two  "full  years 
of  experience"  this  pledge  and  its  principle  were  violated  by  the 
removal  of  at  least  10,000  public  positions  from  the  civil  service 
list. 

That  platform  promised  the  creation  of  a  national  board  of 
arbitration  to  adjust  differences  between  employer  and  employe, 
and  yet  that  pledge  has  never  been  fulfilled. 

That  platform  promised  that  the  remaining  territories  would 
be  admitted  and  that  the  citizens  of  Alaska  should  have  represen- 
tation in  congress  and  vet  neither  of  these  pledges  has  been  ful- 
filled. 

There  are  many  statements,  arguments  and  principles  asserted 
by  the  Republican  party  that  have  not  been  approved,  verified  or 
vindicated  after  "five  full  years  of  experience."  The  above  are 
a  few. 


AN  INQUIRY  ANSWERED. 

A  reader  asks  for  a  definition  of  the  word  "Democracy"  as  used 
by  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  also  a  definition  of  the  word  "Republican- 
ism" as  used  by  Abraham  Lincoln.  If  the  reader  will  compare 
the  utterances  of  Jefferson  with  the  utterances  of  Lincoln  he  will 
find  that  Lincoln  used  the  word  "Republican"  in  the  same  sense 
that  Jefferson  used  the  word  "Democrat."  In  fact,  the  followers 
of  Jefferson  were  first  called  Republicans,  and  Jefferson  speaks  of 
Republicanism  as  synonymous  with  Democracy.  For  instance, 
in  1790,  in  a  reply  to  an  address  (see  Jeffersonian  Cyclopedia, 
page  754),  he  said: 

The  republican  is  the  only  form  of  government  which  is  not 
eternally  at  open  and  secret  war  with  the  rights  of  men. 


280  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

In  1793,  in  a  letter  to  Madison,  he  said: 

The  war  between  France  and  England  has  brought  forward 
the  republicans  and  monocrats  in  every  state  so  openly  that  their 
relative  numbers  are  perfectly  visible.  It  appears  that  the  latter 
are  as  nothing. 

In  1821,  toward  the  close  of  his  life,  in  a  letter  to  General  Dear- 
born, he  said  : 

It  is,  indeed,  of  little  consequence  who  governs  us  if  they  sin- 
cerely and  zealously  cherish  the  principles  of  union  and  republi- 
canism." 

Jefferson  embodied  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence  his  idea 
of  Democracy  and  of  Eepublican  government,  for  the  word  Eepub^ 
lican  is  taken  from  the  word  republic,  and  that  means  a  govern- 
ment in  which  the  people  act  through  representatives  chosen  by 
themselves. 

Among  those  who  believe  in  a  Democratic-Eepublic,  there  is  a 
wide  difference  between  those  who  emphasize  the  democratic  part 
of  the  name  and  want  the  government  as  near  as  possible  to  the 
people,  and  those  who  emphasize  the  representative  part  of  the 
name  and  want  the  government  as  far  removed  from  the  people 
as  possible.  Both  Jefferson  and  Lincoln  had  confidence  in  the  people 
— both  as  to  their  right  to  a  voice  in  government  and  as  to  their 
capacity  for  self-government. 

Lincoln  was  an  enthusiastic  admirer  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  and 
in  one  of  his  speeches  said  that  he  drew  every  political  principle 
he  had  from  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

While  there  is  little  or  no  difference  between  the  meanings  of 
the  words  "Democrat"  and  "Republic?  "  as  used  by  Lincoln  and 
Jefferson,  each  word  has  a  party  sense  in  which  it  describes  the 
members  of  a  political  organization.  In  this  sense  the  meaning 
of  the  word  may  change  as  a  party  changes.  The  word  "Demo- 
cratic" stands  for  different  policies  to-day  from  what  it  did  when 
it  described  those  who  supported  Mr.  Cleveland's  administration, 
and  the  word  "Republican"  now  stands  for  principles  quite  an- 
tagonistic to  those  which  Lincoln  advocated.  Some  think  more 
of  the  party  name  than  they  do  of  the  principles  for  which  a  party 
stands,  and  such  change  their  principles,  when  necessary,  to  main- 
tain their  party  affiliations. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  281 

A  LOVEK  OF  LIBEKTY. 

The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  has  recently  met  an  American 
citizen  of  Eussian  birth  whose  love  for  liberty  and  whose  intense 
devotion  to  our  principles  of  government  ought  to  serve  as  a  re- 
buke to  those  who  are  endeavoring  to  obliterate  the  difference  be- 
tween a  republic  and  a  monarchy.  He  was  the  son  of  a  well-to-do 
Eussian  and  received  a  university  education.  While  in  college  he 
happened  to  see  copies  of  the  Declaration  of  American  Inde- 
pendence and  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  The  govern- 
mental theories  set  forth  in  these  instruments  found  a  response 
in  his  heart,  and  he  became  so  devoted  a  believer  in  government 
resting  for  its  authority  upon  the  consent  of  the  governed  that  he 
was  compelled  to  leave  Eussia  and  the  estate  he  inherited  from 
his  father  was  confiscated.  He  is  now  building  himself  up  in  his 
chosen  occupation  with  every  promise  of  success.  He  knows  what 
imperialism  means  and  prizes  the  right  to  think  for  himself  and 
to  express 'his  thoughts. 

His  face  glowed  with  patriotic  pride  as  he  declared  that  he 
would  rather  live  in  this  country,  even  though  poor,  and  be  free 
to  believe  in  our  form  of  government,  than  to  enjoy  his  family 
estate  and  be  compelled  to  live  under  the  arbitrary  rule  of  a  mon- 
arch. 

Those  who  are  so  anxious  to  exploit  foreign  lands  that  they  look 
with  favor  upon  a  colonial  policy  do  not  realize  how  steadily  and 
stealthily  the  doctrine  of  colonialism  extinguishes  that  regard  for 
the  inalienable  rights  of  man  upon  which  our  government  is 
founded. 


"A  WOELD  POWER." 

A  subscriber  asks  what  is  meant  by  the  phrase  "a  world  power" 
when  used  in  connection  with  the  United  States?  That  depends 
upon  the  view  point  from  which  the  subject  is  considered.  When 
the  imperialists  talk  about  this  nation  being  a  world  power,  they 
mean  that  we  should  have  a  large  army  and  a  large  navy,  and 
join  European  nations  in  parceling  out  the  land  of  what  are  called 
the  inferior  races.  When  the  anti-imperialists  speak  of  this  nation 
as  a  world  power,  they  mean  that  it  should,  in  the  future  as  in 
the  past,  influence  the  world  through  its  ideas  and  example. 


282  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

For  a  century  this  nation  has  been  the  most  potent  influence 
in  the  world,  and  has  done  more  to  affect  the  politics  of  the  human 
race  than  all  the  other  nations  combined.  It  has  been  a  world 
power  and  its  influence  has  been  exerted  without  any  evil  effect 
upon  our  own  institutions. 


THE  PRODUCER'S  SHAEE. 

The  New  York  Nation  turns  its  face  away  from  its  golden  god 
long  enough  to  shout  a  denial  of  Mr.  Bryan's  statement  that  every 
decade  finds  a  less  proportion  of  the  wealth  produced  in  the  hands 
of  the  producers.  The  statement  is  so  easily  verified  that  it  is  sur- 
prising that  the  Nation,  even  with  its  predisposition  to  take  the 
side  of  wealth,  would  deny  it.  The  census  of  1890  showed  a  gen- 
eral and  alarming  increase  in  the  proportion  of  tenants  and  a 
corresponding  decrease  in  the  proportion  of  home  owners,  and 
Mr.  George  K.  Holmes,  of  the  Census  Department,  forming  his 
opinion  from  the  census  figures,  stated  in  the  Political  Science 
Quarterly  that  nine  per  cent,  of  the  families  of  the  United  States 
own  seventy-one  per  cent,  of  the  wealth  of  the  nation,  while  the 
remaining  ninety-one  per  cent,  divided  among  them  only  twenty- 
nine  per  cent,  of  the  wealth. 

As  an  illustration  of  what  is  going  on  one  state  will  be  cited 
now.  Mr.  Eltweed  Pomeroy  in  an  article  written  for  the  Challenge 
has  given  some  tables  showing  the  distribution  of  wealth  in  Massa- 
chusetts as  set  forth  by  the  probate  of  estates.  From  1829  to 
1831,  sixty-one  per  cent,  of  the  population  died  without  property, 
nineteen  per  cent,  died  owning  property  worth  less  than  one  thou- 
sand dollars  in  value,  and  thirteen  per  cent,  owned  property  valued 
at  from  one  thousand  to  five  thousand  dollars.  About  ninety-four 
per  cent,  of  the  people  owned  about  twenty-five  per  cent,  of  the 
property.  From  1859  to  1861,  the  statistics  showed  that  sixty-six 
per  cent  died  without  property,  that  twelve  per  cent,  died  with 
property  worth  less  than  one  thousand  dollars,  and  less  than 
fourteen  per  cent,  owned  between  one  thousand  and  five  thousand 
dollars  worth  of  property — about  ninety-two  per  cent,  of  the 
people  owned  less  than  fifteen  per  cent,  of  the  property.  From 
1879  to  1881,  sixty-nine  per  cent,  died  without  property,  nine 
per  cent,  had  less  than  one  thousand  dollars,  and  less  than  thir- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  283 

teen  per  cent,  had  property  from  one  thousand  to  five  thousand 
dollars  value — by  this  time  about  ninety-one  per  cent,  owned  less 
than  ten  per  cent,  of  the  property. 

These  figures  show  a  constant  increase  in  the  percentage  of  per- 
sons who  die  without  property,  and  a  constant  decrease  in  the 
possessions  of  a  large  majority  of  the  people.  The  last  ten  years 
will  doubtless  show  still  greater  concentration  of  wealth.  The 
Nation  may  try  to  justify  this  concentration;  it  may  argue  that 
the  speculators  and  manipulators  are  entitled  to  a  larger  and  larger 
share  of  the  wealth  produced,  but  it  cannot  disprove  the  proposi- 
tion stated  by  Mr.  Bryan. 


TARIFF  CONCESSIONS  TO  CUBA. 

There  are  indications  that  the  sugar  trust  is  determined  to 
make  a  vigorous  fight  against  the  proposition  that  tariff  conces- 
sions be  made  to  Cuba.  Congressman  Hepburn,  of  Iowa,  says: 
"I  have  heard  much  talk  about  the  tariff  concessions  that  should 
be  made  to  Cuba.  I  have  but  little  sympathy  with  the  idea  of 
concessions.  The  articles  that  Cuba  would  desire  to  have  admitted 
free  of  duty,  or  at  a  less  rate  than  other  nations  pay,  would  be 
sugar  and  tobacco.  We  are  probably  producing  in  the  United 
States  this  year  200,000  tons  of  beet  sugar,  justifying  the  expecta- 
tion that  in  ten  years'  time,  with  the  present  conditions  continued, 
we  will  produce  all  the  sugar  needed  in  the  United  States."  We 
are  not  producing  sufficient  sugar  to  supply  the  demand  in  this 
country.  Will  public  interests  suffer  by  tariff  concessions  that 
permit  the  entrance  into  this  country  of  Cuban  sugar?  The 
Washington  Post,  commenting  upon  Congressman  Hepburn's  state- 
ment, presents  a  few  figures  of  its  own.  The  Post  says : 

Suppose  we  produce  200,000  tons  this  year,  how  far  will  it  go 
toward  supplying  the  demand?  That  would  make  a  huge  pile 
of  sugar,  but  our  total  consumption  is  ten  times  that  quantity, 
being  2,000,000  tons  of  2,240  pounds  each.  We  produce  300,000 
tons  of  cane  sugar,  to  which  add  the  beet  product  of  200,000, 
and  we  are  1,500,000  short.  In  other  words,  we  must  import 
75  per  cent,  of  our  enormous  consumption.  Our  present  im- 
portation is  about  1,800,000  tons  per  annum. 

With  what  reason  shall  we  refuse  tariff  concessions  to  the  Cuban 


284  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

people  on  the  sugar  question  when  the  demand  in  the  United 
States  cannot  be  supplied  by  the  sugar  produced  in  this  country? 
We  have  assumed  considerable  authority  over  Cuba  in  spite  of 
our  pledge  to  see  to  it  that  the  Cuban  people  were  free  and  inde- 
pendent. It  seems,  therefore,  that  on  our  part  we  should  be 
willing  to  make  some  concessions;  and  those  concessions  which 
will  contribute  at  once  to  the  public  welfare  of  Cuba  and  to  the 
public  welfare  of  the  United  States  would  seem  to  recommend 
themselves  to  practical  men. 


THE  ELECTIONS  AT  HAND. 

Next  Tuesday's  elections  in  Iowa,  Maryland,  Massachusetts,  Ne- 
braska, New  Jersey,  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania  will  be  watched  with 
interest  and  variously  interpreted.  In  all  of  the  states  the  re- 
publicans have  indorsed  the  last  national  platform  of  the  party, 
and  in  case  of  victory  will  claim  that  republican  policies  have  been 
approved  by  the  people. 

The  democrats,  on  the  contrary,  have  been  divided  and  therefore 
weakened  by  the  effort  of  gold  democrats  to  emasculate  the  party 
creed.  Where  they  have  failed  to  secure  the  repudiation  of  the 
Kansas  City  platform  they  have  been  sore  and  disgruntled.  Where 
they  have  been  successful  in  suppressing  the  last  national  utter- 
ances of  the  party  they  have  alarmed  and  offended  the  real  demo- 
crats by  rejoicing  over  what  they  term  "the  party's  return  to 
conservatism." 

In  some  states"  national  issues  have  been  entirely  ignored, 
and  while  the  re-organizers  have  thus  avoided  the  charge  of  dis- 
crimination against  any  particular  issue,  they  have  exposed  them- 
selves to  more  bitter  attack  from  the  opposition,  for  the  republi- 
cans stand  ready  to  force  the  fight  upon  any  issue  which  the 
democrats  dodge.  If  the  Kansas  City  platform  democrats  were 
to  follow  the  example  set  by  the  gold  democrats,  the  party  would 
be  overwhelmingly  defeated  in  all  of  the  states  in  which  the  leaders 
have  shown  themselves  hostile  to  democratic  principles  as  enunci- 
ated last  year;  but  those  who  kept  the  faith  and  made  sacrifices 
during  the  campaigns  of  1896  and  1900  will  not  falter  in  their 
allegiance  to  the  party  merely  because  of  temporary  defeat.  They 
will  support  the  ticket  and  then  begin  at  once  to  perfect  an  or- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  285 

ganization  which  will  make  it  impossible  for  the  re-organizing 
element  to  steal  another  march  on  the  voters. 

The  re-organizers,  where  they  are  in  control,  are  in  a  position 
to  blame  local  issues  for  their  defeat  if  defeat  comes,  and  to  claim 
credit  for  victory,  if  victory  is  won;  but  this  will  not  deter  the 
regular  democrats  from  doing  their  duty. 

In  Iowa  the  democrats  reaffirmed  the  Kansas  City  platform, 
but  declared  their  purpose  to  make  the  fight  upon  state  issues. 
While  our  party  has  a  normal  majority  of  considerable  size  to 
overcome,  the  full  democratic  strength  is  likely  to  be  polled. 

In  Maryland,  no  reference  was  made  to  national  issues,  and 
the  negro  question  seems  to  be  the  main  local  issue.  The  failure 
of  the  convention  to  take  a  position  upon  national  issues  leaves 
the  voters  in  the  dark  as  to  the  views  of  the  senator,  in  case  a 
democrat  is  elected. 

In  Massachusetts,  the  Kansas  City  platform  was  reaffirmed,  and 
ex-Mayor  Quincy,  nominated  for  governor.  The  convention  was 
a  very  harmonious  one,  and  the  ticket  will  doubtless  make  a  good 
showing.  While  Mr.  Quincy  was  a  gold  democrat  in  1896,  he 
took  an  active  part  in  the  campaign  'of  1900,  and  in  his  public 
speeches  accepts  the  democratic  platform,  preferring  to  support  the 
democratic  party,  even  though  more  radical  than  he  would  desire, 
rather  than  risk  a  continuation  of  republican  policies. 

In  Nebraska,  there  is  compete  fusion,  the  democrats  furnishing 
a  candidate  for  supreme  judge  and  the  populist  party  the  two  re- 
gents. The  Kansas  City  platform  was  reaffirmed  by  the  demo- 
cratic convention,  and  indications  point  to  an  increased  fusion 
vote.  The  republicans  have  imported  some  of  their  speakers  of 
national  reputation  and  are  striving  hard  to  overcome  the  depress- 
ing influence  exerted  by  the  party's  mismanagement  of  the  treas- 
ury department.  The  present  republican  treasurer  fails  to  show 
where  all  of  the  state's  money  is  located,  and  one  of  the  regents 
nominated  by  the  convention  had  to  withdraw  because  it  became 
known  that  he  had  not  repaid  money  borrowed  of  the  defaulting 
state  treasurer. 

The  campaign  in  New  Jersey  is  being  fought  on  local  issues 
and  it  is  difficult  for  an  outsider  (or  for  an  insider,  either,  for 
that  matter) ,  to  make  an  estimate  upon  the  result. 

The  returns  from  Ohio  will  be  watched  with  the  most  interest 
because  it  is  the  home  of  the  late  president  as  well  as  the  home 


286  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  the  chairman  of  the  republican  national  committee.  The  repub- 
licans are  trying  to  turn  the  assassination  of  the  president  to 
political  advantage,  and  are  using  his  name  to  rally  the  lukewarm 
members  of  the  party.  Mr.  Kilbourne,  the  democratic  candidate, 
has  the  confidence  of  the  masses,  and  will  make  an  excellent  show- 
ing, notwithstanding  the  manner  in  which  he  was  handicapped  by 
the  action  of  the  convention  in  ignoring  the  Kansas  City  platform. 
He  would  be  much  stronger  if  he  were  at  liberty  to  combat  the 
republican  position  on  every  question.  His  conduct  in  past  cam- 
paigns shows  his  loyalty  to  the  party  and  he  should  have  the  good 
will  and  cordial  support  even  of  those  who  felt  aggrieved  because 
the  convention  gave  some  evidence  of  the  return  to  the  cowardice 
and  evasion  that  characterized  convention  utterances  when  the 
gold  standard  element  was  in  control  of  the  party. 

The  Pennsylvania  election  will  turn  upon  state  questions  and 
the  democrats  will  be  aided  to  some  extent  by  the  anti-Quay  repub- 
licans— may  their  tribe  increase ! 

Let  every  democrat,  populist  and  silver  republican  be  at  the  polls ! 
The  republican  party  is  becoming  more  and  more  subservient  to  the 
corporate  interests  of  the  country  and  every  republican  victory 
makes  tlie  leaders  more  arrogant.  We  cannot  afford  to  give  open 
support  or  silent  encouragement  to  the  imperialistic-trust-gold 
standard  and  bank  monopoly  policies  of  the  republican  party. 


ONE  EYE  OPEN. 

When  Mr.  Bryan  spoke  at  Minneapolis,  during  the  campaign  of 
1896,  former  Senator  Washburn  addressed  a  letter  to  him  asking 
certain  questions.  It  was  an  unusual  thing  for  a  man  ol  Mr. 
Washburn's  prominence  to  inject  himself  into  a  public  speech,  but 
Mr.  Bryan  read  his  letter  at  the  meeting  and  responded  to  it.  It 
seems  that  Mr.  Washburn  is  getting  acquainted  with  the  trust 
question.  In  a  recent  interview  he  discusses  the  subject  with  in- 
telligence and  even  vehemence.  It  is  gratifying  to  note  some  evi- 
dence of  revolt  among  the  republicans,  who  are  responsible  for  an 
administrative  policy  that  permits  the  trusts  to  thrive  and  fatten 
upon  people  at  large.  THE  COMMONER  is  glad  to  give  circulation 
to  the  following  extract  from  Mr.  Washburn's  interview: 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  287 

Steel  rails  can  be  manufactured  to-day  at  a  fair  profit  and  sold 
at  $17.50  a  ton.  At  that  price  the  rail  mills  would  make  a  larger 
profit  on  their  product  than  the  flouring  mills  would  make  by  a 
profit  of  ten  cents  a  barrel  on  flour — which  the  flouring  mills  would 
be  glad  to  make,  but  do  not.  '  From  the  best  information  I  have 
been  able  to  gather,  steel  rails  can  be  manufactured  at  about  $16 
per  ton.  Sold  as  they  were  two  and  a  half  years  ago  at  $17.50, 
there  was  a  profit  of  $1.50  per  ton,  which  is  more  than  the  profit 
on  flour  at  10  cents  per  barrel,  and  that  is  a  larger  profit  than  is 
averaged  by  the  flouring  mills  of  this  country.  Yet  such  rails 
are  now  being  sold  at  $28  per  ton,  making  it  easy  to  understand, 
with  such  enormous  profits,  how  the  steel  mills  are  enabled  to  pay 
dividends  on  shares  three-fourths  of  which  are  composed  of  water. 
I  do  not  know  just  what  sum  would  be  required  to  rebuild  these 
properties,  but  from  what  I  am  able  to  learn  I  am  satisfied  that 
they  can  be  reproduced  at  less  than  one-half  of  the  amount  for 
which  they  are  capitalized.  The  consequence  is  that  the  people 
and  consumers  of  the  country  are  being  taxed  to  this  enormous 
extent  in  order  that  the  trusts  and  consolidations  may  pay  such 
dividends.  And  yet,  with  this  condition  of  things,  we  now  have  a 
duty  of  $7.80  per  ton  on  steel  rails !  And  what  I  have  here  said 
of  steel  rails  can  also  be  said  of  structural  steel,  which  now  enters 
into  construction  of  different  kinds  to  such  an  enormous  extent. 
If  this  is  not  robbery  I  would  like  to  find  some  stronger  word  to 
characterize  it. 

"Eobbery"  is  a  strong  word,  but  Mr.  Washburn  wants  some- 
thing even  stronger.  What  will  he  say  of  an  administration  that 
permits  the  robbery  to  go  on  without  making  an  effort  to  protect 
the  public?  Possibly  Mr.  Washburn  has  only  one  eye  open;  with 
this  he  sees  the  trusts  very  clearly.  When  he  gets  the  other  eye 
open  he  will  be  able  to  see  the  republican  party  standing  behind 
the  trusts  and  receiving  for  campaign  purposes  a  part  of  the 
money  extorted  from  the  people. 


288  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

XIV. 
THE  NEGRO  QUESTION. 

The  action  of  President  Roosevelt  in  inviting  Prof.  Booker  T. 
Washington  to  dine  at  the  White  House  was  unfortunate,  to  say 
the  least.  It  will  give  depth  and  acrimony  to  a  race  feeling  already 
strained  to  the  uttermost.  The  race  question,  so  far  as  it  concerns 
our  colored  population,  presents  itself  in  four  phases;  first,  the 
legal  rights  of  the  black  man;  second,  his  educational  opportuni- 
ties; third,  his  political  privileges,  and,  fourth,  his  social  status. 

As  to  the  first  there  can  be  no  question.  The  negro  is  a  citizen, 
and  as  a  citizen  is  entitled  to  all  the  guarantees  of  the  federal 
and  state  constitutions.  He  has  freedom  to  speak  and  to  write; 
freedom  of  conscience  and  the  right  "to  life,  liberty  and  the  pur- 
suit of  happiness."  In  these  respects  there  is  no  distinction  be- 
tween him  and  the  white  man.  The  republicans,  when  challenged 
to  defend  imperialism,  are  in  the  habit  of  referring  to  the  suffrage 
amendments  adopted  in  some  of  the  Southern  states,  as  if  the  black 
man  of  the  South  and  the  brown  man  of  the  Orient  were  being 
similarly  treated.  The  fact  is,  however,  that  in  none  of  the  South- 
ern states  has  an  attempt  been  made  to  take  from  the  negro  the 
guarantees  enumerated  in  our  constitution  and  in  the  bill  of  rights ; 
whereas  the  Filipino  in  the  Orient  and  the  Porto  Rican  in  the 
West  Indies  are  denied  the  protection  of  the  constitution.  In  the 
South  the  Xegro  is  still  a  citizen  and  entitled  to  the  consideration 
due  a  citizen.  Under  republican  rule  in  Porto  Rico  and  the  Philip- 
pines, however,  the  inhabitants  are  subjects  and  suffer  the  common 
lot  of  those  who  live  under  arbitrary  power. 

In  the  matter  of  education  the  negro  is  entitled  to  all  the  oppor- 
tunities offered  to  the  white  man.  The  negro  must  be  educated; 
no  community  can  afford  to  permit  any  portion  of  its  population 
to  remain  ignorant  or  to  become  imbruted.  The  whites,  for  theit 
own  welfare  as  well  as  for  the  good  of  the  negroes,  must  see  to  it 
that  the  free  school  is  open  to  every  child,  white  and  black. 

The  negro  has  already  made  great  progress  in  intellectual  de- 
velopment, and  this,  too,  largely  through  the  aid  of  the  white 
people  of  the  south.  The  former  slave-owners  have  at  their  own 


The  Commomer  Condensed. T  289 

expense  been  educating  the  former  slaves,  while  the  more  partisan 
republicans,  some  of  them  holding  office  by  the  aid  of  negro  votes, 
have  been  inciting  the  negro  to  oppose  everything  advocated  by 
the  southern  whites,  regardless  of  the  merits  of  the  proposition 
under  consideration. 

The  political  rights  of  the  negro  have  for  a  quarter  of  a  century 
been  the  subject  of  public  discussion. 

The  republican  party  did  not  urge  emancipation  in  the  begin- 
ning; Lincoln,  the  head  of  thai  party,  expressly  declared  that  he 
had  no  intention  of  interfering  with  slavery  in  the  states  in  which 
it  then  existed,  but  emancipation  followed  as  a  result  of  the  war 
and  now  no  one  in  all  the  land  would  advocate  a  reinstatement  of 
the  system  of  slavery. 

The  franchise  was  conferred  upon  the  negro  soon  after  the  war 
by  the  republican  party,  but  during  the  past  few  years  that  party 
has  shown  less  and  less  interest  in  the  political  status  of  the 
colored  man. 

In  some  of  the  Southern  states  educational  qualifications  have 
been  prescribed  with  a  view  to  securing  white  supremacy  in  the 
state  and  local  governments. 

While  universal  suffrage  is  the  ideal  condition  toward  which  the 
world  is  moving,  and  while  it  is  a  matter  to  be  regretted  that  even 
educational  qualifications  are  ever  found  necessary,  it  must  be 
admitted  that  such  qualifications  have  been  prescribed  and  are 
still  in  existence  in  some  northern  as  well  as  in  some  southern 
states. 

These  qualifications  are  defended,  where  they  exist,  not  on  the 
ground  that  the  Declaration  of  Independence  is  wrong,  not  on  the 
ground  that  all  men  are  not  created  equal  or  that  they  are  not 
endowed  with  inalienable  rights,  nor  yet  on  the  ground  that  govern- 
ments do  not  derive  their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the 
governed,  but  upon  the  theory  that,  when  races  of  different  degrees 
of  civilization  are  thrown  together  and  must  necessarily  live 
together  under  the  same  government — -when,  in  other  words,  it 
is  simply  a  question  as  to  which  race  shall  exert  a  controlling 
influence — then  the  more  advanced  race  Has  always  exercised  the 
right  to  impose  conditions  upon  those  less  advanced. 

Every  race  is  capable  of  self-government — it  would  be  an  insult 
to  the  Creator  to  assume  that  He  brought  into  existence  a  race 
of  people  incapable  of  self-government  and  entirely  dependent  upon 


290  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

some  other  race  for  government — but  while  every  race  is  capable 
of  self-government,  a  race  may  not  be  capable  of  sharing  upon 
equal  terms  in  the  control  of  a  government  whose  blessings  are 
enjoyed  by,  and  whose  burdens  are  imposed  upon,  several  races 
differing  in  their  advancement.  No  argument  will  justify  one  race 
in  invading  the  territory  of  another  race  in  order  to  force  upon 
that  race  an  alien  government  and  the  evils  of  a  colonial  system,, 
but  when  conditions  force  the  two  races  to  live  under  the  same 
government  in  the  same  country  the  more  advanced  race  never  has 
consented,  and  probably  never  will  consent,  to  be  dominated  by 
the  less  advanced.  Whether  the  conditions  in  the  south  are  such 
as  to  justify  the  amendments  which  have  been  adopted  is  a  question 
of  fact  which  must  be  decided  upon  .evidence — not  a  question  of 
theory  which  can  be  settled  by  those  far  removed  from  the  condi- 
tions which  have  to  be  considered. 

Northern  states  imposed  qualifications  upon  white  men  before 
any  southern  state  imposed  qualifications  upon  black  men. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  a  qualification  for  suffrage,  un- 
desirable as  it  is,  raises  a  very  different  question  from  that  pre- 
sented by  a  colonial  system.  In  the  first  place,  a  suffrage 
qualification  is  temporary  and  those  who  are  excluded  to-day  may 
qualify  themselves  to  vote  to-morrow ;  the  condition  is  not  hopeless. 
Under  the  colonial  system,  however,  the  disqualification  is  perma- 
nent. There  are  no  means  provided  whereby  the  subject  may 
become  a  citizen. 

In  the  second  place,  the  man  excluded  from  suffrage  because  he 
cannot  meet  the  requirements  of  the  law  lives  under  the  constitu- 
tion and  laws  made  by  the  voters  for  themselves,  while  the  subject 
under  a  colonial  government  lives  under  laws  made  by  the  voters, 
but  not  binding  upon  the  voters.  Both  of  these  differences  are 
important.  The  temporary  character  of  the  obstacle  to  suffrage 
above  referred  to  finds  its  parallel  in  tHe  probationary  term  pre- 
scribed for,  and  the  conditions  imposed  upon,  those  who  seek  to 
be  naturalized. 

As  to  the  second  difference,  every  thoughtful  person  knows 
that  the  danger  of  oppressive  and  unjust  legislation  is  infinitely 
multiplied  when  the  man  who  makes  the  law  not  only  avoids  the 
provisions  of  the  law,  but  finds  a  profit  in  enforcing  its  provisions 
against  others.  This  is  the  foundation  of  all  the  crimes  committed 
by  empires  against  their  subjects. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  291 

The  social  phase  of  the  negro  question  has  seldom  been  discussed 
for  the  reason  that  no  man  or  party  has  advocated  social  equality 
between  the  white  man  and  the  black  man.  McClure,  Phillips  & 
Co.  have  recently  published  a  little  volume  entitled  "Abraham 
Lincoln,  His  Book,  a  facsimile  reproduction  of  the  original  with  an 
explanatory  note  by  J.  McCan  Davis."  This  is  a  book  prepared 
by  Abraham  Lincoln  himself  for  the  use  of  Captain  Jas.  N.  Brown, 
of  Illinois,  a  candidate  for  the  state  legislature  in  1858.  Mr. 
Brown  was  confronted  with  the  charge  that  Mr.  Lincoln,  whom 
Mr.  Brown  was  supporting  for  the  United  States  senate,  was  in 
favor  of  "negro  equality."  In  order  that  Mr.  Brown  might 
answer  his  critics,  Mr.  Lincoln  made  a  collection  of  his  own 
utterances  on  the  subject,  and  on  the  first  page  wrote:  "The 
following  extracts  are  taken  from  various  speeches  of  mine  de- 
livered at  various  times  and  places  and  I  believe  that  they  contain 
the  substance  of  all  I  have  said  about  'negro  equality.' ';  The 
sixth  extract  quoted  in  this  remarkable  little  volume  contains  the 
following : 

Now,  gentlemen,  I  don't  want  to  read  at  any  greater  length, 
but  this  is  the  true  complexion  of  all  I  have  ever  said  in  regard  to 
the  institution  of  slavery  and  the  black  race.  This  is  the  whole 
of  it,  and  anything  that  argues  me  into  this  idea  of  perfect  social 
and  political  equality  with  the  negro,  is  but  a  specious  and  fantastic 
arrangement  of  words,  by  which  a  man  can  prove  a  horse  chestnut 
to  be  a  chestnut  horse.  (Laughter.)  I  will  say  here,  while  upon 
this  subject,  that  I  have  no  purpose  directly  or  indirectly  to  inter- 
fere with  the  institution  of  slavery  in  the  states  where  it  exists. 
I  believe  I  have  no  lawful  right  to  do  so,  and  have  no  inclination 
to  do  so.  I  have  no  purpose  to  introduce  political  and  social 
equality  between  the  white  and  the  black  races.  There  is  a  physical 
difference  between  the  two,  which  in  my  judgment  will  probably 
forever  forbid  their  living  together  upon  the  footing  of  perfect 
equality,  and  inasmuch  as  it  becomes  a  necessity  that  there  must 
be  a  difference,  I,  as  well  as  Judge  Douglas  am  in  favor  of  the  race 
to  which  I  belong,  having  the  superior  position.  I  have  never  said 
anything  to  the  contrary,  but  I  hold  that  notwithstanding  all  this 
there  is  no  reason  in  the  world  why  the  negro  is  not  entitled  to 
all  the  natural  rights  enumerated  in  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence, the  right  of  life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness. 
(Loud  cheers.) 

The  above  quotation  selected  by  Mr.  Lincoln  himself  from  one 
of  his  own  speeches  for  the  purpose  of  answering  the  criticism  of 


292  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

his  political  opponents,  sets  forth  the  great  emancipator's  views  on 
three  of  the  four  phases  of  the  negro  question.  He  believed  that 
the  negro  was  equal  to  the  white  man  in  the  natural  rights  enumer- 
ated in  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  he  believed  that  it 
was  the  duty  of  the  government  to  protect  him  in  the  enjoyment 
of  these  rights.  He  opposed  slavery,  believing  it  to  be  wrong  in 
principle,  although  he  expressly  declared  that  he  had  no  intention 
of  interfering  with  slavery  in  the  states  in  which  it  then  existed. 

Second,  he  recognized  the  distinction  between  political  rights 
and  natural  rights,  and  exhibited  that  partiality  toward  his  own 
race  which  is  inherent  to  every  one. 

Third,  he  recognized  the  fact  that  social  equality  is  not  neces- 
sary to  the  protection  of  the  negro  in  the  enjoyment  of  all  his 
natural  rights.  Mr.  Eoosevelt  will  not  find,  therefore,  in  the 
life  or  words  of  Lincoln  anything  to  justify  him  in  advocating 
social  equality,  if  his  act  can  be  construed  as  representing  his 
views  on  this  subject. 

The  natural  rights  of  all  are  the  same,  and  it  is  the  province 
of  government  to  protect  these  natural  and  inalienable  rights — 
rights  which  were  vested  in  man  by  the  Creator,  rights  which  can- 
not be  taken  from  him  without  rendering  his  life  valueless  to 
him  and  to  his  fellows.  But  man  chooses  his  society  for  himself. 
It  is  as  much  a  matter  of  taste  as  the  selection  of  a  husband  or 
a  wife.  It  is  no  cause  for  offence  to  any  man  that  you  prefer 
to  associate  with  some  one  else;  it  depends  upon  your  character 
and  virtues  whether  the  preference  is  a  compliment  to  or  a  re- 
flection upon  him,  but  in  either  case  you  have  a  right  to  choose 
congenial  companions,  and  in  doing  so  you  are  not  only  within 
your  rights,  but  you  are  doing  what  every  one  does.  Those  who 
love  books  enjoy  each  other's  company,  although  some  may  be 
very  rich  and  some  very  poor.  The  rich  may  enjoy  each  other's 
company  although  some  are  ignorant  and  some  are  intellectual. 
People  are  drawn  together  by  family  ties,  by  church  relations, 
by  neighborhood  associations,  and  in  a  multitude  of  other  ways. 
Usually  social  lines  are  invisible  ones,  but  they  are  everywhere 
recognized.  They  are  no  more  inconsistent  with  universal  broth- 
erhood than  are  family  ties  or  national  obligations.  The  families 
of  a  community  are  separate  and  distinct;  each  is  engaged  in  its 
work  and  each  decides  how  far  it  will  share  its  confidence  and 
its  companionship  with  the  families  about  it,  but  this  does  not 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  293 

prevent  the  recognition  of  the  right  of  all  families  to  equal  con- 
sideration and  protection  at  the  hands  of  the  government,  nor 
does  it  prevent  the  exercise  of  charity,  mercy  and  benevolence. 
The  various  nations  are  but  groups  of  families  associated  together 
for  mutual  protection  and  benefit.  The  fact  that  each  nation 
has  customs,  institutions  and  laws  peculiar  to  itself,  does  not  pre- 
vent its  recognition  of  those  natural  rights  which  are  broader  and 
deeper  than  national  boundaries. 

So,  the  members  of  a  race  are  bound  together  by  sympathies 
and  sentiments  which  are  both  natural  and  permanent.  Those 
who  oppose  social  equality  between  the  white  man  and  the  negro 
do  so  on  the  ground  that  they  do  not  believe  that  the  amalgama- 
tion of  the  two  races  is  desirable.  They  think  it  better  for  the 
white  man  to  work  out  the  problems  of  his  race  while  the  black 
man  is  working  out  the  problems  of  his  race.  There  can  be 
co-operation  and  helpfulness  without  inter-marriage.  Each  race 
can  recognize  the  natural  rights  of  the  other  and  both  can  con- 
tribute as  far  as  is  within  their  power,  to  the  strength  and  de- 
velopment of  the  nation.  The  advocacy  of  social  equality  will 
tend  to  throw  the  white  and  the  black  races  into  greater  antago- 
nism and  conflict  rather  than  to  bring  them  together,  and  the 
wiser  members  of  the  negro  race  know  this. 

President  Eoosevelt  doubtless  recognizes,  as  all  well  informed 
men  do,  the  great  service  which  Mr.  Washington  has  rendered 
to  the  members  of  his  race.  He  is  not  the  only  colored  man  who 
deserves  great  credit,  but  he  is  probably  its  most  conspicuous 
member  of  the  present  generation.  The  president  may  have  in- 
vited him  without  considering  the  question  that  it  raises,  and 
Mr.  Washington  may  have  accepted  from  a  feeling  that  an  invita- 
tion from  the  president  was  equivalent  to  a  command.  It  is  to 
be  hoped  that  both  of  them  will  upon  reflection  realize  the  wisdom 
of  abandoning  their  purpose  to  wipe  out  race  lines,  if  they  enter- 
tain such  a  purpose.  Prof.  Washington's  work  as  an  educator 
will  be  greatly  impaired  if  he  allows  it  to  be  understood  that  his 
object  is  to  initiate  the  members  of  his  race  into  the  social  circles 
of  the  whites,  and  he  will  do  injustice  to  those  of  his  own  color 
if  he  turns  their  thoughts  away  from  intellectual  and  moral  de- 
velopment to  the  less  substantial  advantages — if  they  are  any  ad- 
vantages at  all — to  be  derived  from  social  equality.  The  negro 
can  find  a  sufficient  stimulus  in  the  ambition  to  so  elevate  himself 


294  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

and  the  members  of  his  race  as  to  create  a  satisfactory  society 
among  his  own  people;  his  efforts  in  behalf  of  his  race  will  be 
weakened  rather  than  strengthened  by  any  effort  on  his  part  to 
desert  those  of  his  own  color  in  order  to  shine  in  white  society. 
No  advantage  is  to  be  gained  by  ignoring  race  prejudice;  it  is 
wiser  to  recognize  it  and  to  make  our  plans  conform  to  it.  Race 
pride,  like  self-respect,  is  a  valuable  characteristic.  Race  pride 
will  do  the  negro  good ;  he  has  reason  to  be  proud  of  what  his  race 
has  already  accomplished  and  he  can  employ  all  the  energies  of 
a  strenuous  life  in  an  effort  to  show  that  his  race  is  deserving 
of  a  high  place  among  the  races  of  the  earth,  and  that  place  will 
depend,  not  upon  social  distinctions,  but  upon  mental  breadth 
and  moral  worth.  The  race  question  which  we  have  on  hand 
will  require  for  its  proper  solution  the  intelligence  and  patriotism 
of  all  the  people,  black  as  well  as  white.  The  recent  occurrence 
at  the  White  House  will  not  make  that  solution  easier,  but  it  ought 
to  convince  all  of  the  folly  of  adding  to  those  problems  which  we 
must  meet  another  greater  and  more  complicated  race  problem  in 
the  Orient. 


THE  MONEY  QUESTION  AGAIN. 

The  republicans  and  gold  democrats  are  continually  declaring 
that  the  money  question  is  dead,  yet  there  are  at  this  time  three 
important  financial  measures  under  consideration.  The  national 
bankers  at  their  recent  meeting  held  in  Milwaukee  discussed  and 
apparently  approved  of  both  the  "branch  bank"  and  "the  asset 
currency."  An  effort  is  to  be  made  to  so  change  the  national 
bank  law  as  to  permit  the  organization  of  a  great  central  bank 
with  numerous  branches  scattered  throughout  the  country.  If 
this  effort  succeeds  the  small  banks  will  be  driven  out  of  existence 
and  the  business  interests  of  the  land  will  be  under  the  control 
and  at  the  mercy  of  the  group  of  financiers  in  charge  of  the  central 
institution.  Every  senator  chosen  by  a  legislature  elected  this  fall 
will  have  to  vote  on  this  question,  and  yet  gold  democrats  object 
to  having  the  people  express  themselves  on  this  subject 

The  national  bankers  who  attended  the  meeting  above  referred 
to  were  practically  unanimous  in  their  support  of  what  is  called 
an  "asset  currency" — a  bank  currency  issued  in  proportion  to  and 
secured  by  the  assets  of  the  respective  national  banks.  This  system 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  295 

is  not  only  open  to  all  the  objections  urged  against  other  kinds 
of  bank  currency,  but  in  addition  to  these  objections  it  is  evident 
that  the  asset  currency  is  not  as  safe  as  a  currency  based  upon 
bonds;  and  it  is  plain  that  such  a  currency  impairs  the  security 
of  depositors.  Every  senator  chosen  by  a  legislature  elected  this 
fall  will  have  to  act  upon  this  proposition,  and  yet  gold  democrats 
are  opposed  to  allowing  the  people  to  express  themselves  upon  this 
question. 

A  few  days  ago  the  St.  Louis  Globe-Democrat  said  editorially: 

There  is  an  excellent  chance  for  the  enactment  in  the  coming 
session  of  congress  of  the  silver  redemption  bill  which  Kepresenta- 
tive  Overstreet,  of  Indiana,  introduced  in  the  recent  congress, 
but  which  failed  for  want  of  time  for  its  adequate  consideration. 
This  measure,  which  will  be  introduced  in  the  house  immediately 
after  it  meets  a  few  weeks  hence,  proposed  the  exchange  of  silver 
dollars  in  gold,  the  gold  for  this  purpose  to  come  from  the  regular 
redemption  fund  of  the  treasury.  This  would  strengthen  the  gold 
standard  act  of  March  14,  1900,  in  a  place  which  it  would  be 
desirable  to  strengthen  it. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  the  advocates  of  the  gold  standard  are 
planning,  first,  to  make  silver  dollars  redeemable  in  gold;  and, 
second,  to  retire  the  silver  dollars.  When  the  financiers  wanted 
to  bring  discredit  upon  the  treasury  notes,  issued  under  the  Sher- 
man law  they  presented  them  for  redemption  and  then  clamored 
for  gold  bonds  to  furnish  the  necessary  gold.  Having  coerced 
the  treasury  department  into  the  issue  of  bonds,  they  declared 
that  the  treasury  notes  constituted  an  endless  chain  and  demanded 
their  retirement.  When  they  had  succeeded  in  securing  the  un- 
conditional repeal  of  the  Sherman  law,  they  resorted  to  the  same 
tactics  to  secure  the  retirement  of  greenbacks.  They  are  endeavor- 
ing to  create  a  still  larger  and  longer  "endless  chain"  by  making 
the  silver  dollar  redeemable  in  gold,  and  if  this  crusade  against 
the  white  metal  is  successful  they  will  insist  that  the  silver  dollar 
must  be  retired  in  order  to  protect  the  treasury. 

The  financiers  have  several  other  measures  in  contemplation, 
but  these  three  are  now  being  openly  advocated.  Every  senator 
chosen  by  the  legislatures  elected  this  fall  will  have  to  vote  upon 
these  questions.  If  the  gold  democrats  do  not  know  this  they  lack 
information;  if  they  know  it  and  avoid  the  subject  they  lack 
honesty ;  and  in  either  case  they  do  not  deserve  the  confidence  of 
the  democrats  whom  they  offer  to  lead. 


296  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

It  seems  incredible  that  any  real  democrat  should  be  deceived 
by  men  who  spend  half  the  time  vociferously  declaring  that  the 
money  question  is  dead  and  tlie  other  half  in  aiding  a  conspiracy 
which  has  for  its  object  the  establishing  of  a  bank  despotism. 

Even  in  Missouri  several  persons  have  been  "mentioned"  for 
the  United  States  senate  who,  if  they  boldly  announced  their  views 
on  the  money  question,  could  not  carry  a  single  primary  in  the 
state;  but  they  will  not  announce  their  position  on  the  money 
question;  they  will  plead  for  harmony  and  claim  that  they  are 
loyal  democrats.  Their  first  effort  is  to  get  rid  of  the  Kansas  City 
platform  and  then  they  will  try  to  secure  the  nomination  of  un- 
instructed  representatives  who  are  under  secret  pledge  to  them. 

The  corporations  stand  ready  to  furnish  money  to  elect  mem- 
bers of  the  legislature  who  can  be  relied  upon  to  vote  for  senators 
satisfactory  to  the  corporations,  but  such  senators  will  not  only  be 
hostile  to  the  democratic  party  on  all  phases  of  the  money  ques- 
tion, but  they  will  be  so  obligated  to  organized  wealth  that  they 
cannot  be  trusted  to  give  earnest  support  to  any  needed  reform. 
The  money  question  cannot  be  eliminated  from  politics  so  long  as 
the  financiers  are  proceeding  step  by  step  to  secure  new  privileges 
and  new  advantages  at  the  expense  of  the  rest  of  the  people. 


HOAE  IS  CONSISTENT. 

Senator  Hoar  has  shown  his  consistency  by  declining  an  in- 
vitation to  deliver  a  political  eulogy  on  the  late  president.  In 
explanation  of  his  refusal  he  says  that  he  is  extremely  busy  just 
now,  but  adds : 

I  ought  in  frankness  to  state  another  and  even  stronger  reason. 
I  think  the  eulogy  on  the  president  should  be  delivered  by  some 
person  who  was  in  full  accord  with  him  upon  the  principal  political 
measure  of  his  administration.  I  never  questioned  his  absolute 
honesty,  his  devotion  to  the  public  welfare,  his  love  of  liberty  and 
his  desire  to  do  his  duty  as  God  gave  him  to  see  it.  I  was  fully 
in  accord  with  him  on  the  great  fiscal  measures  with  which  he  was 
identified.  But,  as  you  know,  I  differed  with  him  and  his  admin- 
istration (and  my  opinion  on  that  subject  has  been  strengthened 
and  not  weakened  in  the  lapse  of  time)  in  regard  to  his  policy  in 
dealing  with  the  Philippine  Islands. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  297 

Like  many  others  who  differed  with  Mr.  McKinley  on  one  or 
more  political  questions,  Senator  Hoar  has  expressed  his  admira- 
tion for  the  many  personal  virtues  of  the  dead  chief  magistrate, 
his  sorrow  at  his  death  and  his  detestation  of  the  manner  of  his 
taking  off,  but  he  thinks,  and  very  properly,  that  praise  of  the 
president's  views  on  political  questions  should  come  from  some 
one  in  harmony  with  all  of  the  policies  of  the  administration.  It 
will  be  remembered  that  the  Massachusetts  senator  declared  that, 
if  an  imperial  policy  was  pursued,  the  fall  of  the  republic  would 
date  from  Mr.  McKinley's  administration,  and  it  will  also  be  re- 
membered that  he  closed  his  memorable  speech  against  imperialism 
by  appealing  from  "Philip  drunk  to  Philip  sober."  He  says  that 
his  opinion  on  this  subject  has  been  strengthened  rather  than  weak- 
ened by  subsequent  observation.  How  then,  could  he  be  expected 
to  deliver  an  eulogy  that  would  satisfy  partisan  republicans  ? 

Opponents  of  imperialism  may  be  expected  to  share  in  all  ex- 
ercises that  give  expression  to  the  unanimous  regard  for  Mr.  Mc- 
Kinley as  a  man  and  to  the  respect  entertained  for  the  high  office 
to  which  he  was  elevated  by  his  countrymen,  but  they  cannot  be 
expected  to  participate  in  any  demonstration  which  could  be  con- 
strued as  an  endorsement  of  the  late  president's  change  from 
hostility  to  "forcible  annexation,"  and  "criminal  aggression,"  to 
the  advocacy  of  "benevolent  assimilation."  The  moment  the  re- 
publicans attempt  to  use  the  life  or  death  of  Mr.  McKinley  to 
advance  the  policies  for  which  their  party  stands,  that  moment 
they  substitute  partisan  ends  for  a  patriotic  purpose  and  should 
confine  their  appeals  to  those  who  are  republicans  on  all  ques- 
tions. 


DEATH  WITHOUT  HOPE. 

The  lesson  taught  by  the  last  hours  of  Czolgosz  should  not  be 
lost  upon  the  world.  He  expired  like  one  who  sinks  in  mid-ocean 
without  a  sail  in  sight.  How  barren  of  real  happiness  must  be  the 
life  of  one  who  denies  the  existence  of  a  God,  defies  all  government, 
and  cultivates  the  belief  that  he  can,  without  moral  guilt,  take 
the  life  of  a  fellow  being  merely  because  that  fellow  being  is  ad- 
ministering for  a  little  while  the  authority  conferred  upon  him 
by  his  countrymen.  How  can  he  delude  himself  with  the  belief 
that  he  is  living  upon  a  more  exalted  plane  than  ordinary  people? 


298  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Consider  the  perennial  joys  of  the  gray-haired  patriarch  who 
learned  in  youth  that  "The  fear  of  God  is  the  beginning  of  wis- 
dom," who  has  met  life's  responsibilities  with  a  prayer  for  light  to 
see  his  duty  and  courage  to  perform  it,  and  who  approaches  the 
grave  "like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch  about  him  and 
lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams."  Consider  the  life  of  such  a  one, 
and  compare  it  with  the  career  of  one  who  lives  in  constant  re- 
bellion against  nature  and  in  constant  antagonism  to  society,  and 
then  ends  life  as  a  lonely  traveler  would  turn  from  a  deserted  house 
out  into  a  dark  and  starless  night. 

Compare  the  sweet  contentment  of  one  who  accepts  life's  suc- 
cesses and  reverses  with  the  sentiment  of  the  psalmist :  "The  Lord 
is  my  Shepherd;  I  shall  not  want.  He  maketh  me  to  lie  down  in 
green  pastures ;  He  leadeth  me  beside  the  still  waters.  *  *  *  Yea, 
though  I  walk  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,  I  will 
fear  no  evil :  For  Thou  art  with  me :  Thy  rod  and  Thy  staff  they 
comfort  me."  Compare  this  with  the  lot  of  one  who  curses  the 
Creator  and  His  creatures,  and  then  swears  back  at  the  echo  of 
his  blasphemy. 


AN  INTERESTING  LETTER. 

The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  has  received  an  interesting  letter 
from  one  who  describes  himself  as  a  former  gold  democrat,  one 
who  in  1896  supported  the  Palmer  and  Buckner  ticket  until 
election  day  and  then  voted  the  republican  ticket.  He  says  that 
when  the  campaign  of  1900  began  the  republicans  advanced  the 
same  arguments  that  they  had  in  1896,  namely,  that  "if  a  party 
comes  into  power  that  will  not  cater  to  the  large  institutions, 
capitalists  and  bankers,  the  money  of  the  country  will  be  taken 
from  circulation." 

He  says  that  this  was  the  argument  which  caused  him  to  leave 
the  democratic  party  in  1896,  but  that  in  1900  the  same  argument 
drove  him  "from  the  party  that  advocated  such  unpatriotic  prin- 
ciples." 

He  commends  the  work  which  THE  COMMONER  is  doing  and 
protests  against  any  surrender  to  the  re-organizers.  He  says: 
"What  would  democratic  victory  amount  to  if  the  leadership  was 
in  the  hands  of  those  who  represent  the  financial  institutions  of 
this  country?  "What  every  true  patriotic  democrat  wants  is  a 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  299 

victory  at  the  polls  won  on  the  principles  set  forth  in  the  Kansas 
City  platform." 

He  suggests  that  it  takes  many  people  a  long  time  to  learn 
to  vote  for  their  own  interests,  (and  adds  that  it  took  him  four 
years),  but  insists  that  the  fight  must  be  continued  until  a  victory 
is  won.  The  letter  is  referred  to  because  so  many  democrats  do 
not  seem  to  realize  that  re-organization,  as  advocated  by  the  gold 
democrats,  would  mean  the  despotic  control  of  conventions  and 
democratic  administrations  (if  there  were  any  under  such  leader- 
ship) by  the  financial  interests  that  are  to-day  arrayed  against  the 
masses  on  every  important  issue.  It  is  not  so  much  the  gold 
standard  that  these  men  want  as  the  absolute  and  unquestioned 
control  of  the  treasury  department,  and  with  it  the  control  of 
the  attorney  general's  office.  They  will  be  satisfied  with  nothing 
less,  but  as  soon  as  their  real  purpose  is  fully  understood  they 
will  be  powerless  to  thwart  the  honest  aims  and  plans  of  the  rank 
and  file  of  the  party. 

THE  ELECTIONS  OF  1901. 

While  it  is  impossible  at  this  time  to  measure  and  weigh  the 
local  influences  which  may  have  affected  the  general  result,  enough 
is  known  to  justify  the  conclusion  that  the  two  leading  political 
parties  show  practically  the  same  strength  that  they  did  a  year 
ago.  If  the  republican  policies  which  have  been  developing  during 
the  last  twelve  months  have  aroused  any  protest  among  the  people, 
that  protest  has  been  off-set  by  the  influence  exerted  by  the  assas- 
sination of  the  president.  The  republicans  everywhere  confessed 
their  reliance  upon  this  influence  when  they  devoted  so  much  time 
to  appeals  to  the  personal  regard  felt  for  McKinley,  the  man. 
It  is  not  unnatural  that  the  republicans  should  have  been  spurred 
to  greater  activity  by  the  president's  death,  neither  is  it  strange 
that  it  caused  some  apathy  on  the  other  side. 

There  was  another  general  cause  which  helped  the  republican 
position,  namely,  the  ability  of  the  republicans  to  get  out  their  vote. 
The  off-year  election!?  always  show  a  falling  off  in  the  voting  popula- 
tion as  compared  with  presidential  and  congressional  elections, 
and  the  party  that  is  best  organized  and  most  successful  in  get- 
ting its  voters  to  the  polls  has  an  advantage.  Take,  for  instance, 
the  election  in  Nebraska  this  year.  The  total  vote  will  probably 


3OO  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

fall  fifty  thousand  below  the  vote  of  last  year.  If  there  is  a 
loss  in  the  republican  vote  of  twenty  thousand,  and  a  loss  in  the 
fusion  vote  of  thirty  thousand,  the  republican  candidate  can  have 
ten  thousand  majority  more  than  his  ticket  had  last  year,  and 
yet  have  twenty  thousand  votes  less  than  his  party  polled  last 
year. 

Aside  from  having  federal  officials  everywhere  through  whom 
to  reach  the  voters,  and  besides  having  money  everywhere  with 
which  to  organize,  the  republicans  in  some  of  the  states  are  able 
to  secure  from  the  railroad  companies  transportation  for  all  per- 
sons who  desire  to  return  home  to  vote.  In  every  community 
there  are  voters  who,  for  business  reasons,  have  frequent  occa- 
sion to  be  absent  from  home.  The  party  that  is  able  to  bring 
every  voter  home  on  election  day  has  an  immense  advantage 
over  the  party  that  cannot  furnish  transportation.  During  the 
recent  campaign  the  republican  authorities  were  prepared  to 
secure  passes  and  send  every  Nebraska  student  home  to  vote,  a 
practice  not  only  helpful  to  the  party,  but  demoralizing  to  the 
citizen. 

The  returns  do  not  give  any  considerable  advantage  to  either 
element  of  the  democratic  party.  The  re-organizers  have  not 
gained  any  prestige  where  they  have  secured  control,  neither 
have  the  regular  democrats  won  any  signal  victories  where  they 
have  been  in  charge  of  the  campaign. 

We  gain  a  senator  in  Kentucky  and  the  state  shows  an  increase 
in  the  strength  of  the  democratic  party,  but  as  we  elected  a 
democratic  senator  there  two  years  ago,  and  carried  the  state 
last  year,  the  result  this  year,  though  gratifying,  was  confidently 
expected.  The  democrats  have  carried  Maryland,  and  Mr.  Gor- 
man will  in  all  probability  be  re-elected  to  the  senate,  but  as 
the  campaign  was  fought  purely  on  local  issues,  (the  negro  ques- 
tion being  the  main  issue),  the  victory  is  not  a  vindication  of  any 
national  policy.  In  Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  and  Xew  Jersey,  where 
the  conventions  failed  or  refused  to  reaffirm  the  Kansas  City 
platform,  the  republicans  won.  In  Massachusetts,  Iowa  and 
Nebraska  where  the  conventions  did  reaffirm  the  Kansas  City 
platform  the  republicans  also  won.  In  so  far  as  the  result  has 
any  influence  upon  the  democratic  party,  it  will  tend  to  strengthen 
those  who  believe  in  fighting  for  principle  rather  than  those  who 
are  all  the  time  offering  to  lead  the  party  to  a  glorious  victory, 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  301 

provided  it  will  abandon  its  principles.  Those  who  fight  fo* 
principle  may  mourn  over  a  defeat,  but  their  purpose  is  not 
shaken  because  they  are  doing  what  they  believe  they  ought  to 
and  find  their  reward  in  the  consciousness  of  duty  done.  Those, 
however,  who  are  willing  to  suspend  their  principles  in  the  hope 
of  securing  political  success  have  little  to  console  them  when  a 
reverse  comes.  If  a  man  barters  his  convictions  for  a  promise 
of  success  and  then  loses,  he  has  nothing  left;  if  a  man  keeps  his 
convictions  with  him  he  has  a  foundation  upon  which  to  build 
in  future  contests. 

It  would  seem  that  republican  policies  ought  to  arouse  over- 
whelming opposition  among  the  wealth-producers  of  the  country, 
for  surely  no  man  who  earns  his  living  can  point  to  any  advan- 
tage which  the  republican  party  brings  or  can  bring  to  the  masses 
of  the  people.  In  the  bank  control  of  our  currency,  in  the  monopo- 
listic control  of  our  industries  and  in  an  imperial  policy  for  the 
country  there  are  danger  and  disaster  for  a  large  majority  of  the 
people.  But  they  evidently  fail  to  appreciate  the  viciousness  of 
the  principles  which  are  at  work.  The  only  lesson  that  can  be 
drawn  from  the  election  returns  is  that  still  more  work  is  neces- 
sary. The  "let-well-enough-alone"  argument  cannot  always  pre- 
vail, for  bad  principles  will  ultimately  bring  about  bad  times, 
and  experience,  costly  experience,  will  teach  those  who  refuse 
to  foresee  evil  and  provide  against  it. 


ORGANIZE  DEBATING  SOCIETIES. 

The  election  is  over,  and  while  the  returns  are  not  sufficiently 
complete  for  analysis  it  is  evident  that  the  democratic  party  has 
not  made  any  considerable  gains  since  1900.  In  another  column, 
the  returns,  so  far  as  they  are  in,  have  been  discussed  and  some 
of  the  difficulties  encountered  have  been  enumerated.  It  is  plain 
that  there  must  be  a  large  amount  of  educational  work  done  if 
the  country  is  to  be  saved  from  the  evil  results  that  must  neces- 
sarily follow  the  continued  support  of  republican  policies.  How 
can  this  work  be  done?  The  large  dailies  cannot  be  relied  upon, 
because  they  are  too  intimatelv  connected  with  the  men  and  the 
corporations  enriched  by  republican  policies.  It  cannot  be  done 
entirely  through  the  democratic  and  populist  weeklies,  for  they 


302  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

do  not,  as  a  rule,  reach  the  people  who  most  need  enlightment. 
A  debating  society  should  be  organized  in  each  country  precinct 
and  in  each  village.  Let  it  be  non-partisan  in  its  membership 
and  educational  in  its  purpose.  Meetings  should  be  held  once  a 
month,  or,  if  possible,  once  in  two  weeks,  for  the  discussion  of 
public  questions. 

Let  the  motto  of  the  society  be:  "Country  first,  party  after- 
wards." 

To  avoid  any  wrangle  about  the  officers  it  would  be  well  to 
select  the  president  from  the  party  having  the  largest  vote  in  the 
precinct,  and  the  vice-president  from  the  leading  minority  party. 
If  three  other  officers,  recording  secretary,  corresponding  secre- 
tary and  treasurer,  are  selected,  all  parties  can  be  given  a  fair 
representation  in  the  management  of  the  society  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  programs.  The  officers  of  the  society,  if  they  constitute 
a  committee  on  program,  should  arrange,  besides  other  features, 
for  a  discussion  of  some  live  question  at  each  meeting — the  leaders 
to  open  the  debate  and  the  other  members  of  the  society  to  have 
an  opportunity  to  speak  briefly  when  the  leaders  are  through. 

No  one  should  be  afraid  of  having  his  party  injured  by  a  full 
and  fair  presentation  of  all  public  questions.  The  person  who 
objects  to  the  discussion  of  public  questions  confesses  the  weakness 
of  his  own  cause  or  brings  an  indictment  against  the  intelligence 
and  patriotism  of  the  people.  The  hope  of  the  nation  lies,  first, 
in  the  study  of  public  questions,  and,  next,  in  a  ballot  cast  accord- 
ing to  the  dictates  of  conscience  and  judgment. 


SEVERE  ON  BOLTERS. 

Sometimes  the  gold  democrats  who  bolted  the  ticket  in  1896 
complain  because  the  regular  democrats  insist  that  those  who  de- 
serted the  party  five  years  ago  should,  on  coming  back,  give  some 
assurance  of  their  purpose  to  support  the  ticket  hereafter.  While 
the  conditions  imposed  have  never  been  unreasonable  or  severe,  they 
have  aroused  violent  criticism  in  some  quarters.  It  may  not  be 
out  of  place,  therefore,  to  quote  what  the  St.  Paul  Globe  says  about 
local  bolters.  In  a  recent  issue  it  condemns  some  St.  Paul  alder- 
men who  deserted  their  party  in  the  election  of  a  county  com- 
missioner. The  following  is  an  extract  from  the  Globe's  editorial: 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  303 

It  is  as  the  Globe  predicted  it  would  be :  A  democratic  county 
commissioner  has  been  elected  by  the  votes  of  the  democratic  alder- 
men assisted  by  one  republican,  and  democratic  traitors  are  ignored 
and  spat  upon,  as  they  long  since  should  have  been.  Treason  to 
the  party  has  not  been  found  profitable  in  practice  among  St.  Paul 
democrats.  It  will  be  found  no  more  in  the  future.  Hunt  and 
Bantz  have  a  severe  reckoning  before  them;  and  we  apprehend 
that  the  mass  of  St.  Paul  democrats  will  find  as  little  use  for  them 
in  the  future  as  the  democratic  aldermen  found  for  them  in  the 
election  of  County  Commissioner  Kelly. 

The  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard,  and  transgressors  these 
men  have  been  of  all  the  rules  and  observances  in  political  life  which 
all  true  party  men  and  good  citizens  will  hold  themselves  bound  by. 
The  Globe  will  gladly  aid  their  return  to  the  obscurity  from  which 
they  should  never  have  emerged. 

The  Globe  is  much  more  severe  in  denouncing  democratic  alder- 
men who  refuse  to  support  their  party  in  a  local  fight  than  the  silver 
democrats  are  in  condemning  papers,  which,  like  the  Globe,  deserted 
the  presidential  ticket  in  a  national  contest. 


EX-GOVERNOR  TAYLOR'S  CASE. 

Governor  Durbin,  of  Indiana,  has  refused  to  honor  a  requisition 
made  upon  him  by  the  Kentucky  authorities  for  ex-Governor  Taylor, 
who  is  now  enjoying  protection  in  the  Hoosier  state.  Governor 
Durbin  gives  his  reasons  at  length,  but  the  reasons  are  all  to  enforce 
his  statement  that  Governor  Taylor  would  not  receive  a  fair  and 
impartial  trial  in  Kentucky.  This  is  a  serious  charge  to  be  made 
by  the  chief  executive  of  one  state  against  the  courts  of  a  sister 
state,  and  the  weight  of  the  objection  is  entirely  destroyed  by  the 
fact  that  Governor  Taylor  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  republi- 
can party,  and  is  being  shielded  from  arrest  by  another  prominent 
member  of  the  same  party.  It  will  be  recalled  that  Governor  Goebel 
was  shot  down  as  the  result  of  a  political  conspiracy,  and  it  will 
also  be  recalled  that  many  of  the  republican  papers  throughout  the 
land  failed  to  express  any  indignation  or  condemnation  of  the  act. 
Governor  Taylor  escaped  from  Kentucky  before  arrest  and  has  since 
been  a  fugitive  from  justice. 

On  June  13,  1900,  Governor  Mount,  of  Indiana,  refused  to  honor 
a  requisition  for  Taylor  on  substantially  the  same  grounds  as  those 
given  by  Governor  Durbin.  Six  days  afterwards,  on  June  19,  ex- 
Governor  Taylor  appeared  at  the  republican  national  convention. 


304  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  papers  reported  that  Temporary  Chairman  Wolcott  recognized 
"Governor  Taylor  of  Kentucky,"  and  addressing  him,  said :  "Come 
to  the  platform,  governor,  they  want  to  see  you."  Mr.  Taylor  ac- 
cepted the  invitation,  and  Chairman  Wolcott  advanced  to  meet 
him,  and,  according  to  the  press  reports,  "the  convention  cheered." 

This  is  the  way  that  the  republican  national  convention  acted 
toward  a  man  at  that  time  charged  with  participation  in  the  assassi- 
nation of  the  chief  executive  of  one  of  the  states  of  the  union. 
While  the  republicans  are  denouncing  anarchy  they  ought  not  to 
forget  that  among  the  causes  which  lead  up  to  the  assassination  of 
presidents  is  the  heroizing  of  a  man  charged  with  the  assassination 
of  a  governor.  Xo  one  is  able  to  form  a  correct  opinion  as  to  the 
guilt  or  innocence  of  Governor  Taylor  until  the  evidence  is  pre- 
sented in  court,  but  an  indictment  rendered  by  a  grand  jury  raises 
a  presumption  that  cannot  be  overthrown  by  the  partisan  opinion 
of  a  governor  who  has  a  political  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  man 
under  accusation. 

The  above  facts  are  given  that  the  readers  of  THE  COMMONER 
may  see  how  political  conditions  affect  the  action  of  republican 
leaders.  President  McKinley  was  assassinated  by  an  anarchist 
whose  act  had  no  political  significance  and  could  not  be  traced  to 
anything  said  or  done  by  any  member  of  the  opposite  party,  and 
yet  republican  papers  were  quick  to  try  to  make  political  capital 
out  of  the  terrible  deed,  and  some  of  them  boldly  charged  the 
responsibility  upon  the  democratic  party.  The  Goebel  assassination 
was  purely  a  political  act,  participated  in  by  republicans,  and  after 
an  indictment  was  returned  against  the  most  prominent  of  these 
republicans,  the  chairman  of  a  republican  national  convention  in- 
vited him  to  the  platform,  republican  delegates  cheered  his  appear- 
ance, and  two  republican  governors  refused  to  surrender  him  for 
trial. 

If  a  republican  cannot  be  tried  in  a  democratic  state,  will  the 
republicans  insist  that  a  democrat  could  have  a  fair  trial  in  a  repub- 
lican state?  If  the  reasons  presented  by  Governor  Durbin  are 
sound,  then  it  is  perfectly  safe  for  a  republican  to  kill  any  demo- 
cratic executive  and  flee  to  a  republican  state,  and  if  democratic 
governors  act  upon  the  same  principle,  it  is  safe  for  a  democrat  to 
kill  a  republican  official  and  then  flee  to  a  democratic  state.  In 
other  words,  the  position  taken  by  Governor  Durbin,  if  accepted 
as  a  precedent,  invites  a  reign  of  lawlessness,  and  ought  to  alarm 
the  friends  of  law  and  order,  regardless  of  political  affiliations. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  305 


XV. 

SUSPICIOUS    KEJOICING. 

Why  do  the  republican  papers  rejoice  over  every  event  which 
they  can  torture  into  a  victory  for  the  re-organizing  element  of  the 
democratic  party?  It  is  onlv  fair  lo  assume  that  the  republican 
editors  have  a  partisan  interest  in  weakening  the  democratic  party. 
It  is  only  fair  to  assume  that  they  will  be  pleased  by  any  indication 
of  weakness  on  the  part  of  their  political  opponents.  Why  is  it 
then,  that  they  exult  whenever  gold  and  corporation  democrats 
secure  control  of  the  party  organization?  Why  is  it  that  they 
constantly  surpress  all  evidence  encouraging  to  Kansas  City  plat- 
form democrats,  and  magnify  everything  that  gives  hope  to  the  men 
who  oppose  the  Kansas  City  platform?  Eead,  for  illustration, 
the  republican  comments  on  the  recent  election.  The  republican 
papers  gave  columns  of  editorial  space  to  the  suppression  of  the 
Kansas  City  platform  by  the  Ohio  convention  and  declared  that 
the  democrats  of  that  state  had  put  themselves  in  good  fighting 
trim  by  discarding  the  so-called  "heresies"  that  had  "handicapped" 
them.  They  also  vociferously  asserted  that  the  democratic  can- 
didate for  governor  in  Iowa  was  opposed  to  allowing  national 
issues  to  enter  into  the  campaign.  Now,  they  point  to  the  re- 
publican majority  in  Iowa  as  a  defeat  for  silver,  and  they  either 
ignore  the  result  in  Ohio  altogether,  or,  as  some  of  the  papers 
do,  explain  it  by  saying  that  Mr.  Kilbourne  was  at  heart  a  silver 
man  and  that  he  did  not  poll  as  large  a  vote  as  he  would  have  polled 
had  he  been  an  advocate  of  the  gold  standard. 

The  result  in  Nebraska  is  especially  pleasing  to  the  republicans, 
although  the  republican  candidate  this  year  polled  fifteen  thousand 
votes  less  than  the  fusion  state  ticket  and  Mr.  Bryan  polled  last 

year. 

The  Chicago  Tribune  says  that  Tuesday's  elections  "are  grati- 
fying," and  that  they  "indicate  plainly  that  the  democratic  party 
is  rehabilitating  itself  by  returning  gradually  to  its  old  doctrines." 
How  fortunate  it  is  that  the  gold  standard  papers,  that  call  them- 
selves democratic,  and  the  republican  papers  are  able  to  agree  so 


306  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

completely  as  to  the  best  course  for  the  democratic  party  to  pursue. 
This  harmony  is  so  harmonious  as  to  arouse  the  suspicion  that 
either  the  republicans  are  badly  deceived  as  to  what  is  best  for  their 
party  or  that  gold  democrats  are  very  much  mistaken  as  to  what 
is  best  for  the  democratic  party. 


"THE  PEOPLE  SOVEKEIGN." 

In  his  seventh  annual  message  to .  congress,  President  Monroe 
said: 

"Meeting  in  you  a  new  congress,  I  deem  it  proper  to  present  this 
view  of  public  affairs  in  greater  detail  than  it  might  otherwise 
be  necessary.  I  do  it,  however,  with  peculiar  satisfaction,  from  a 
knowledge  that  in  this  respect  I  shall  comply  more  fully  with  the 
sound  principles  of  our  government.  The  people  being  with  us 
exclusively  the  sovereign,  it  is  indispensable  that  full  information 
be  laid  before  them  on  all  important  subjects,  to  enable  them  to 
exercise  that  high  power  with  complete  effect.  If  kept  in  the 
dark,  they  must  be  incompetent  to  do  it.  We  are  all  liable  to 
error,  and  those  who  are  engaged  in  the  management  of  public 
affairs  are  more  subject  to  excitement  and  to  be  led  astray  by  their 
particular  interests  and  passions  than  the  great  body  of  our  con- 
stituents, who,  living  at  home  in  the  pursuit  of  their  ordinary 
avocations,  are  calm,  but  deeply  interested  spectators  of  events 
and  of  the  conduct  of  those  who  are  parties  to  them.  To  the 
people  every  department  of  the  government  and  every  individual  in 
each  are  responsible,  and  the  more  full  their  information  the  better 
they  can  judge  of  the  wisdom  of  the  policy  pursued  and  of  the 
conduct  of  each  in  regard  to  it.  From  their  dispassionate  judgment 
much  aid  may  always  be  obtained,  while  their  approbation  will 
form  the  greatest  incentive  and  most  gratifying  reward  of  virtuous 
actions,  and  the  dread  of  their  censure  the  best  security  against 
the  abuse  of  their  confidence.  Their  interests  in  all  vital  questions 
are  the  same,  and  the  bond,  by  sentiment  as  well  as  by  interest, 
will  be  proportionately  strengthened  as  they  are  better  informed  of 
the  real  state  of  public  affairs,  especially  in  difficult  conjunctions. 
It  is  by  such  knowledge  that  local  prejudices  and  jealousies  are 
surmounted,  and  that  a  national  policy,  extending  its  fostering  care 
and  protection  to  all  the  great  interests  of  our  union,  is  formed 
and  steadily  adhered  to. 

This  sentiment  from  one  of  the  greatest  as  well  as  one  of  the 
earliest  presidents  is  respectfully  commended  to  the  present  chief 
executive,  who  not  only  meets  a  new  congress,  but  is  himself  new 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  307 

to  the  responsibilities  so  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  thrust  upon 
him. 

The  people  have  been  agitated  by  conflicting  principles;  they 
have  discussed  conflicting  policies  and  they  have  been  led  or  misled 
by  conflicting  evidence.  It  would  be  well  for  the  president  to 
take  the  people  into  his  confidence  at  the  very  beginning  of  his 
official  career  and  state  to  them  the  facts  as  he  understands  them 
and  the  policies  which  he  believes  it  best  to  pursue.  If  he  believes 
that  a  "branch  bank"  is  a  desirable  thing,  let  him  frankly  say  so 
and  give  his  reasons;  if  he  believes  that  an  "asset  currency"  is 
safe,  let  him  declare  it;  if  he  thinks  that  the  silver  dollar  should 
be  made  redeemable  in  gold,  let  him  say  so  and  also  state  whether 
he  recognizes  the  fact  that  the  retirement  of  the  silver  dollar 
is  the  natural  and  necessary  result  of  its  being  made  redeemable 
in  gold.  If  he  thinks  that  a  national  bank  note,  issued  for  the 
profit  of  the  banks  and  controlled  in  volume  by  banks  for  their 
own  interests,  is  better  than  a  greenback,  let  him  state  his  position 
and  invite  judgment  upon  it.  If  he  thinks  that  a  private  monopoly 
is  a  good  thing,  let  him  explain  why;  or,  if  he  believes  that  it  is 
indefensible  and  intolerable,  let  him  point  out  an  efficient  remedy. 

If  he  believes  in  the  strenuous  doctrine  that  this  nation  will 
decay  unless  it  diverts  itself  with  the  pastime  of  subjugating  or 
killing  off  "inferior  races,"  let  him  openly  announce  his  advocacy 
of  an  imperial  policy  and  reconcile,  if  he  can,  the  principle  of  such 
a  policy  with  the  principles  of  a  republic.  If  he  believes  in 
taxation  without  representation  and  government  without  the  consent 
of  the  governed,  let  him  apologize,  in  the  name  of  the  American 
people,  for  the  war  of  the  revolution  and  for  the  loud  professions 
which  we  have  made  on  the  subject  for  more  than  a  century.  If, 
on  the  contrary,  he  accepts  the  doctrines  set  forth  in  the  Declaration 
of  Independence,  let  him  reconcile  them  with  the  actions  of  our 
carpet-bag  government  in  the  Philippines,  or  use  his  great  influence 
to  bring  the  government  back  to  its  old  foundations. 

The  president  has  shown  that  he  possesses  physical  courage; 
will  he  now  prove  his  possession  of  moral  courage?  Will  he  be 
entirely  frank  with  the  people,  outline  his  policies  and  ask  judg- 
ment upon  them?  Or,  will  he  resort  to  the  ambiguity  that  has 
characterized  the  utterances  of  most  of  the  republican  leaders? 
The  people  are  the  exclusive  sovereign,  and  they  are  entitled  to 
candor  and  honesty  from  those  whom  they  entrust  with  authority. 


308  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


OUR  DUTY  TO  THE  BOERS. 

The  struggle  which  the  brave  Dutchmen  of  the  Transvaal  are 
making  for  national  existence  will  soon  require  American  atten- 
tion, however, much  political  leaders  in  this  country  may  seek  to 
close  their  eyes  to  the  situation. 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  battle  which  the  Boers  are 
waging  against  Great  Britain  is  one  of  the  greatest,  if  not  the 
greatest,  among  all  the  heroic  struggles  in  the  world's  history. 
Xo  thoughtful  American  would  suggest  that  the  United  States 
take  actual  part  in  the  war.  There  are,  however,  some  things 
which  the  United  States  can  do,  which  would  be  natural  for  them 
to  do,  and  which  will  in  time  be  essential  for  them  to  do,  if  the 
administration  would  reflect  the  very  apparent  sentiment  and 
sympathy  of  the  people. 

American  presidents  have  never  hesitated  to  express  public  sym- 
pathy with  a  people  struggling  for  liberty  and  a  republican  form 
of  government.  There  is  in  such  sympathy  something  besides 
the  sentimental;  there  is  an  intensely  practical  feature.  The 
United  States  of  America  furnishes  a  living  protest  against  the 
monarchical  theory  of  government.  Every  monarchy  that  is  trans- 
formed into  a  republic  strengthens  the  United  States.  Every 
republic  that  is  erected  on  foreign  soil  is  distinctly  a  benefit  to 
our  own  republic.  When  a  republic  is  crushed,  or  dies,  the  United 
States  suffers,  perhaps  unconsciously  to  many  of  its  people,  but 
suffers  nevertheless.  Hence,  in  a  contest  between  two  little  re- 
publics in  South  Africa  and  the  British  nation,  the  American 
sympathies  must  be  with  the  South  Africans. 

President  Roosevelt  is  preparing  his  message  to  congress.  He 
has  an  opportunity  to  express  the  sympathy  of  the  American 
people  with  the  republics  of  South  Africa.  He  has  an  opportunity 
to  reflect  the  overwhelming  popular  sentiment  in  this  country 
and  to  give  voice  to  the  well-nigh  unanimous  hope  and  prayer  that 
Great  Britain  may  not  succeed  in  its  efforts  to  destroy  the  two 
republics. 

It  is  not  necessary  that  any  unfriendly  spirit  should  be  shown 
towards  Great  Britain  on  the  part  of  the  one  who  expresses  the 
hope  that  the  people  of  the  Transvaal  will  win  in  this  great  battle. 
It  would,  indeed,  be  surprising  if  the  American  people  were  not 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  309 

heart  and  soul  in  sympathy  with  the  South  Africans,  and  there 
is  no  good  reason,  in  law  or  in  morals,  why  this  sympathy  should 
not  find  reflection  in  the  president's  message.  There  are  models 
at  the  president's  hand  for  such  an  expression. 

In  1822,  President  Monroe,  in  a  message  to  congress,  said: 

Europe  is  still  unsettled,  and  although  the  war  long  menaced 
between  Russia  and  Turkey  has  not  broken  out,  there  is  no  cer- 
tainty that  the  differences  between  those  powers  will  be  amicably 
adjusted.  It  is  impossible  to  look  at  the  oppressions  of  the 
country  respecting  which  those  differences  arose  without  being 
deeply  affected.  The  mention  of  Greece  fills  the  mind  with  the 
most  exalted  sentiments  and  arouses  in  our  bosoms  the  best  feel- 
ings of  which  our  nature  is  susceptible.  Superior  skill  and  re- 
finement in  the  arts,  heroic  gallantry  in  action,  disinterested  pa- 
triotism, enthusiastic  zeal  and  devotion  in  favor  of  personal  and 
public  liberty,  are  associated  with  our  recollections  of  ancient 
Greece.  That  such  a  country  should  have  been  overwhelmed  and 
so  long  hidden,  as  it  were,  from  the  world  under  a  gloomy  des- 
potism has  been  a  cause  of  unceasing  and  deep  regret  to  generous 
minds  for  ages  past.  It  was  natural,  therefore,  that  the  re-ap- 
pearance of  those  people  in  their  original  character,  contending 
in  favor  of  their  liberties,  should  produce  that  great  excitement 
and  sympathy  in  their  favor  which  have  been  so  signally  displayed 
throughout  the  United  States.  A  strong  hope  is  entertained  that 
these  people  will  recover  their  independence  and  resume  their 
equal  station  among  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

In  1823,  President  Monroe,  in  a  message  to  congress,  said: 

A  strong  hope  has  been  entertained,  founded  on  the  heroic 
struggles  of  the  Greeks,  that  they  would  succeed  in  their  contest 
and  resume  equal  station  among  the  nations  of  the  earth.  It  is 
believed  that  the  whole  civilized  world  takes  a  deep  interest  in 
their  welfare.  Although  no  power  has  declared  in  their  favor, 
yet  none,  according  to  our  information,  has  taken  part  against 
them.  Their  cause  and  their  name  have  protected  them  from 
dangers  which  might  ere  this  have  overwhelmed  any  other  people. 
The  ordinary  calculations  of  interest  and  of  acquisition  with  a  view 
to  aggrandizement,  which  mingles  so  much  in  the  transactions 
of  nations,  seem  to  have  had  no  effect  in  regard  to  them.  From 
the  facts  which  have  come  to  our  knowledge  there  is  good  cause 
to  believe  that  their  enemy  has  lost  forever  all  dominion  over 
them;  that  Greece  will  become  again  an  independent  nation. 
That  she  may  obtain  that  rank  is  the  object  of  our  most  ardent 
wishes. ' 


3iO  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

In  1827,  President  John  Quincy  Adams,  in  a  message  to  0on- 
gress,  speaking  of  "the  suffering  Greeks,"  said: 

The  friends  of  freedom  and  of  humanity  may  indulge  the 
hope  that  they  will  obtain  relief  from  that  most  unequal  of  con- 
flicts which  they  have  so  long  and  so  gallantly  sustained;  that 
they  will  enjoy  the  blessings  of  self-government,  which,  by  their 
sufferings  in  the  cause  of  liberty,  they  have  richly  earned,  and 
that  their  independence  will  be  secured  by  those  liberal  institu- 
tions of  which  their  country  furnished  the  earliest  examples  in 
the  history  of  mankind,  and"  which  have  consecrated  to  immortal 
remembrance  the  very  soil  for  which  the  people  and  government 
of  the  United  States  have  so  warmly  indulged  with  their  cause 
have  been  acknowledged  by  their  government,  in  a  letter  of  thanks, 
which  I  have  received  from  their  illustrious  president,  a  translation 
of  which  is  now  communicated  to  congress,  the  representative 
of  that  nation  to  whom  this  tribute  of  gratitude  was  intended 
to  be  paid,  and  to  whom  it  was  justly  due. 

President  Taylor,  in  1849,  in  a  message  to  congress,  said : 

I  have  scrupulously  avoided  any  interference  in  the  wars  and 
contentions  which  have  recently  distracted  Europe.  During  the 
late  conflict  between  Austria  and  Hungary  there  seemed  to  be  a 
prospect  that  the  latter  might  become  an  independent  nation. 
However  faint  that  prospect  at  the  time  appeared,  I  thought 
it  my  duty,  in  accordance  with  the  general  sentiment  of  the  Ameri- 
can people,  who  deeply  sympathized  with  the  Magyar  patriots,  to 
stand  prepared,  upon  the  contingency  of  the  establishment  by 
law  of  a  permanent  government,  to  be  the  first  to  welcome  in- 
dependent Hungary  into  the  family  of  nations.  For  this  purpose 
I  invested  an  agent  then  in  Europe  with  power  to  declare  our 
willingness  promptly  to  recognize  her  independence  in  the  event 
of  her  ability  to  sustain  it.  The  powerful  intervention  of  Russia 
in  the  contest  extinguished  the  hopes  of  the  Magyars.  The  United 
States  did  not  at  any  time  interfere  with  the  contest,  but  the 
feelings  of  the  nation  were  strongly  enlisted  in  the  cause  and 
by  the  sufferings  of  a  brave  people,  who  had  made  a  gallant 
though  unsuccessful  effort  to  be  free. 

In  1850,  President  Taylor,  in  a  message  to  congress,  said: 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  documents  now  transmitted  that  no 
minister  or  agent  was  accredited  by  the  government  of  Hungary 
to  this  government  at  any  period  since  I  came  into  office,  nor 
was  any  communication  ever  received  by  this  government  from 
the  minister  of  foreign  affairs  of  Hungary  or  any  other  executive 
officer  authorized  to  act  in  her  behalf. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  311 

My  purpose,  as  freely  avowed  in  this  correspondence,  was  to 
have  acknowledged  the  independence  of  Hungary  had  she  suc- 
ceeded in  establishing  a  government  de  facto  on  a  basis  sufficiently 
permanent  in  its  character  to  have  justified  me  in  doing  so  accord- 
ing to  the  usages  and  settled  principles  of  this  government;  and 
although  she  is  now  fallen  and  many  of  her  gallant  patriots  are 
in  exile  or  in  chains,  I  am  free  still  to  declare  that  had  she  been 
successful  in  the  maintenance  of  such  a  government  as  we  could 
have  recognized,  we  should  have  been  the  first  to  welcome  her 
into  the  family  of  nations. 

What  has  occurred  in  the  history  of  the  United  States  of  America, 
since  the  days  of  Monroe,  of  Adams  and  of  Taylor  that  this  great 
republic  cannot  give  expression  to  its  honest  sentiments? 

What  is  there  in  the  atmosphere  of  the  present  day  that  would 
restrain  an  American  president  from  expressing  in  a  polite,  yet 
vigorous  way  the  hope  and  prayer  of  the  American  people  that 
in  every  struggle  between  an  empire  and  a  republic,  in  every  con- 
test between  a  monarchy  and  a  people's  government,  the  republic 
may  live,  and  that  the  people's  cause  may  prevail  ? 


WOKKIXGMEX  AT  THE  POLLS. 

The  recent  municipal  elections  in  San  Francisco  illustrate  the 
power  of  the  workingmen  when  they  unite  at  the  polls.  Members 
of  the  union  labor  organizations  organized  a  party  during  the  cam- 
paign, nominated  Mr.  Schmitz  as  their  candidate  for  mayor  and 
carried  the  city  by  a  plurality  of  four  thousand  in  a  total  vote  of 
fifty-three  thousand,  defeating  both  the  republican  and  the  demo- 
cratic candidates. 

San  Francisco  has  been  the  seat  of  labor  troubles  for  some  months 
past.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  iron  workers  struck  early  in 
the  summer  and  that  many  other  trades  unions  went  out  or  were 
locked  out  as  a  result.  An  association  called  the  Employers'  asso- 
ciation tried  to  compel  teamsters  to  abandon  their  unions,  and  the 
trouble  continued  until  about  the  time  candidates  were  nominated 
for  city  offices.  As  Mayor  Phelan,  the  democratic  candidate,  was 
elected  two  and  four  years  ago,  and  as  the  republican  candidate 
this  time  was  second  in  the  race,  it  is  evident  that  a  large  proportion 
of  the  democratic  strength  went  to  the  labor  candidate.  This  is 
proof,  first,  that  the  wage-earners  constitute  a  larger  element  of 


312  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

the  democratic  party  than  of  the  republican  party  and,  second,  that 
democratic  wage-earners  are  an  independent  class  of  voters  who 
cast  their  ballots  according  to  their  judgment.  There  are  so  many 
local  questions  involved  in  a  municipal  campaign  that  the  readers 
of  THE  COMMONER  scattered  throughout  the  country  may  not  be 
able  to  pass  judgment  upon  the  issues  which  the  citizens  of  San 
Francisco  had  to  act  upon,  but  it  is  interesting  to  every  one  to 
know  the  power  that  the  laboring  men  have  when  they  choose  to 
exercise  it.  If  they  would  show  the  same  earnestness  all  over  the 
country  they  would  prove  a  most  effective,  if  not  an  irresistible, 
force  in  reform  movements.  If  the  laboring  men  who  are  in  the 
habit  of  supporting  the  republican  ticket  would  by  their  votes  make 
it  known  that  they  could  not  be  counted  upon  to  aid  a  party  con- 
trolled by  banks,  corporations,  syndicates  and  monopolies,  the  repub- 
lican leaders  would  find  that  no  corporation  funds,  however  vast, 
could  secure  them  a  national  victory. 


THE  GOLD  STRONGHOLD  CAPTURED. 

The  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  know  that  in  the  campaign  of 
1896  the  Palmer  and  Buckner  ticket  carried  but  one  precinct 
in  the  United  States,  namely,  Dudley  -township,  in  Haskell  county, 
Kansas.  The  vote  there  stood :  Palmer  and  Buckner,  3 ;  McKinley 
and  Hobart,  2 ;  Bryan  and  Sewall,  1.  A  reader  of  THE  COMMOXER 
sends  in  a  statement  signed  by  the  county  clerk  of  that  county 
to  the  effect  that  Dudley  township  went  democratic  this  year  by  a 
majority  of  seven. 

The  attention  of  the  Chicago  Chronicle,  the  New  York  World, 
the  Louisville  Courier-Journal  and  other  gold  standard  papers  is 
called  to  this  fact.  While  they  are  "pointing  with  pride"  to 
victories  won  by  the  re-organizers,  let  them  "view  with  alarm'' 
the  recapture  of  this  gold  standard  stronghold,  which  became  so 
conspicuous  five  years  ago. 

The  gold  standard  papers  have  magnified  every  victory  which  the 
re-organizers  have  won  since  1896,  now  let  them  bow  in  humiliation 
over  the  sweeping  defeat  that  has  robbed  them  of  the  only  precinct 
which  their  party  has  ever  carried. 

Ordinarily  the  change  of  a  precinct  would  not  be  a  matter  of 
national  significance,  but  the  change  of  the  only  precinct  that  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  313 

Palmer  and  Buckner  ticket  carried  is  certainly  a  serious  blow  to 
the  men  who  carried  on  that  unique  campaign  of  fraud  and  de- 
ception. The  men  who  did  the  most  talking  for  Palmer  and 
Buckner  voted  the  republican  ticket,  as  did  all  whom  they  could 
secretly  influence.  The  re-organizers  are  being  led  by  those  who 
either  voted  for  the  ticket  that  carried  but  one  precinct,  or  pre- 
tended to  support  it  while  they  voted  the  republican  ticket.  What 
will  the  democratic  party  be  if  they  secure  control  of  the  organi- 
zation ?  What  promise  of  relief  can  the  party  give  to  the  people 
at  large  if  the  policies  of  the  j>arty  are  controlled  by  bolters  who 
have  shown  no  repentance  since  1896  ?  What  hope  of  victory  can 
we  have  under  the  leadership  of  those  who  conducted  the  Palmer 
and  Buckner  party  to  so  disastrous  a  defeat  ? 


DEMOCRATIC  LEADERSHIP. 

The  Chicago  Chronicle,,  emboldened  by  the  success  which  has  in 
some  quarters  attended  the  efforts  made  to  re-organize  the  demo- 
cratic party,  comes  out  with  the  demand  for  new  leadership.  It 
wants  a  new  platform,  candidates  who  are  acceptable  to  the  moneyed 
interests  and  an  organization  that  will  draw  its  sinews  of  war  from 
the  corporations,  and  .then  conduct  the  government  according 
to  the  plans  and  specifications  furnished  by  the  corporations.  It 
says: 

It  is  not  surprising  that  with  a  presidential  candidate  and  these 
managers  from  states  at  a  far  distance  from  the  business  and 
political  center  of  the  country  the  democratic  party  has  been 
defeated  disastrously  in  two  campaigns  and  finds  difficulty  in  rising 
from  its  overthrow.  In  the  future  such  states  as  are  now  re- 
publican, but  may  be  gained  by  the  democrats,  must  furnish  the 
democratic  managing  commifteemen  as  well  as  the  democratic 
national  candidates.  *  *  * 

Not  only  must  the  new  leaders  be  from  the  central  states,  but 
they  must  be  familiar  with  all  classes  of  people — with  the  educated, 
the  enterprising,  the  prosperous,  with  those  who  have  built  up 
and  manage  the  great  commercial,  industrial  and  transportation 
interests,  with  the  farmers  of  the  great  agricultural  states,  with  the 
educators  and  professional  men  of  the  country.  *  *  * 

In  democratic  party  management  the  frontiersmen  must  give 
way  to  representatives  from  those  Darts  of  the  country  that  have 
emerged  from  limited  backwoods  views  of  public  affairs,  of  politics 


314  The  Commoner  Condensed 

and  statesmanship,  of  education  and  progress,  of  the  methods 
by  which  a  great  party  may  be  led  along  the  lines  of  enlightened 
policy,  attract  adherents  from  the  best  elements  of  citizenship, 
gain  the  support  of  independent  voters  and  gain  all  those  forces 
by  which  an  apparent  minority  in  the  campaign  is  swelled  into  a 
majority  at  the  ballot  box. 

We  are  to  have  leaders  who  are  familiar  (why  not  intimate?) 
with  the  "educated,  enterprising  and  prosperous"  and  with  "those 
who  have  built  up  and  manage  the  great  commercial,  industrial  and 
transportation  interests." 

Probably  the  Chronicle  would  consent  to  have  the  word  "edu- 
cated" stricken  out  if  the  party  would  agree  to  consult  only  the 
"prosperous"  and  "those  who  have  built  up  and  manage  the  great 
commercial,  industrial  and  transportation  interests." 

The  proposition  plainly  stated  is  that  the  democratic  party, 
which  owes  its  voting  strength  to  its  advocacy  of  democratic  prin- 
ciples and  to  its  championship  of  the  rights  of  the  common  people, 
must  now  turn  itself  over  to  the  men  wEo  manage  the  great  cor- 
porate enterprises,  and  must  secure  the  support  of  organized 
wealth  by  pledging  itself  not  to  interfere  with  privileges,  favor- 
itism and  exploitation.  The  principal  owner  of  the  Chronicle  is 
Mr.  John  E.  Walsh,  president  of  the  Chicago  "National  bank.  He 
votes  the  republican  ticket,  and  is  on  intimate  terms  with  the 
corporations  which  his  paper  thinks  ought  to  control  the  democratic 
party.  Why  not  nominate  Mr.  Walsh  for  president?  With  such 
a  candidate  it  would  not  be  necessary  to  have  a  platform,  and  thus 
a  great  deal  of  contention  might  be  avoided.  The  platform  would 
be  unnecessary  for  two  reasons,  first,  because  Mr.  Walsh's  environ- 
ment is  a  guarantee  that  he  would  do  nothing  to  disturb  the  enter- 
prises and  privileges  of  those  who  "have  built  up  and  manage 
the  great  commercial,  industrial  and  transportation  interests," 
and,  secondly,  men  of  that  stamp  care  notching  for  platforms 
and  would  not  be  bound  by  them  in  case  of  success.  Mr.  Walsh's 
nomination  would  have  another  advantage,  namely,  it  would  not 
be  necessary  to  nominate  a  candidate  for  vice  president.  The 
convention  could  instruct  the  electors  to  vofe  for  any  person  whom 
Mr.  Walsh,  after  election,  should  suggest.  This  would  enable 
him  to  choose  his  successor  in  case  he  should  undermine  his  own 
constitution  in  his  effort  to  override  the  federal  constitution. 
Neither  would  it  be  necessary  to  have  any  campaign  managers, 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  315 

because  the  clerks  in  Mr.  Walsh's  bank  could  attend  to  the  details 
of  the  campaign,  and  the  financiers  throughout  the  country  could 
be  the  local  representatives  of  the  organization. 

If  the  Chronicle's  theory  is  correct,  such  a  nomination  would 
not  only  transfer  the  party  management  from  the  "frontiersmen'" 
to  "representatives  from  those  parts  of  the  country  that  have 
emerged  from  the  limited  backwoods  view  of  public  affairs,"  etc,, 
but  it  would  attract  adherence  from  the  "best  elements  of  citizen- 
ship*' (as  measured  by  the  pocketbook  standard),  and  gain  the 
support  of  those  "independent  voters"  who  allow  the  financiers  to 
do  their  thinking  for  them.  No  doubt  such  a  policy  would  swell 
the  vote  "of  an  apparent  minority  in  the  campaign"  into  "a 
majority  at  the  ballot  box" — provided  always  that  the  organization 
had  enough  money  to  buy  all  the  republican  votes,  and  was  able 
at  the  same  time  (a  very  difficult  matter)  to  retain  the  democratic 
vote.  Probably  the  Chronicle  goes  on  the  theory  that  we  would 
not  need  any  of  the  democratic  votes  if  we  could  buy  all  the 
republican  votes. 

This  is  the  substance  of  the  advice  given  by  a  paper  controlled 
by  a  republican,  but  pretending  to  be  democratic,  and  its.  advice 
is  in  entire  harmony  with  a  number  of  other  papers  owned  in  the 
same  way  and  operated  for  the  same  purpose.  Is  it  possible  that 
such  papers  can  have  any  influence  with  democrats  who  believe 
in  democratic  principles  and  think  more  of  the  party's  honor  than 
they  do  of  any  temporary  success  won  by  a  sacrifice  of  the  interests 
of  the  people  ? 


A  PKOPHECY  THAT  FAILED. 

In  the  campaign  of  1900  the  republican  leaders  denied  that  their 
party  contemplated  a  permanent  increase  in  the  standing  army. 
They  asserted  that  a  large  army  was  only  necessary  because  of  the 
insurrection  in  the  Philippines,  and  they  boldly  declared  that  the 
insurrection  would  cease  immediately  if  the  republican  ticket  was 
successful.  The  democratic  platform  and  democratic  speakers  were 
blamed  for  the  prolongation  of  the  war.  "Just  re-elect  President 
McKinley,"  they  said,  "and  let  the  Filipinos  know  that  they  are 
not  to  have  independence,  and  they  will  lay  down  their  arms  and 
our  soldiers  can  come  home." 


316  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Well,  the  republican  ticket  was  elected,  and  the  Filipinos  were 
notified  that  they  were  not  to  have  independence,  but  a  month  after 
the  election  the  republicans  rushed  through  congress  a  bill  authoriz- 
ing the  president  to  raise  the  regular  army  to  100,000,  and  now, 
after  a  year  has  elapsed,  the  insurrection  is  still  in  progress  and  the 
end  is  not  yet.  Some  of  the  worst  losses  of  the  year  have  been  suf- 
fered by  our  troops  within  two  months.  General  Chaffee  reports 
that  the  Filipinos  have  profited  by  the  deception  practiced  upon 
them  when  Aguinaldo  was  trapped.  He  says  that  "insurgent 
soldiers  in  ordinary  civilian's  dress  lurked  about  and  among  Ameri- 
can garrisons,"  and  he  adds  that  "with  deceptive  cunning  they  ob- 
tained credentials  from  American  authorities."  We  were  assured  a 
year  ago  that  only  a  small  fraction  of  the  Filipinos  were  hostile  to 
the  American  government.  We  were  told  that  the  great  majority  of 
the  Filipinos  welcomed  the  American  government  and  were  glad 
to  be  made  subjects.  The  Times-Herald  quotes  General  Chaffee  as 
saying  that  "the  whole  people  of  the  Philippines  are  engaged  in 
waging  war  upon  the  United  States."  The  Times-Herald  (a  repub- 
lican paper)  adds :  "The  Filipinos  who  are  friendly  to  the  United 
States  are  said  to  be  those  holding  office,  and  the  officers  who  dis- 
cussed the  situation  to-day  assert  that  their  loyalty  will  continue 
only  so  long  as  they  have  the  opportunity  of  drawing  American 
dollars." 

If  Mr.  McKinley  was  correctly  informed  when  he  stated  that 
most  of  the  Filipinos  were  friendly,  then  the  insurrection  has,  ac- 
cording to  General  Chaffee,  increased  rather  than  diminished. 

After  the  republican  victory  made  it  impossible  for  the  imperial- 
ists to  blame  the  anti-imperialists  for  the  continuation  of  hostilities, 
the  republican  leaders  declared  that  Aguinaldo,  actuated  by  selfish 
ambition,  was  compelling  his  countrymen  to  continue  the  war. 
But  even  after  his  capture  and  imprisonment — yes,  even  after  his 
captors  had  secured  from  him  an  address  advising  his  comrades 
to  surrender — the  insurrection  continued.  How  long  will  it  take 
the  imperialists  to  learn  that  we  can  never  have  peace  in  the  Philip- 
pine Islands?  That  we  can  suppress  open  resistance  is  certain, 
although  the  cost  may  be  far  beyond  any  gain  that  can  be  derived 
from  a  colonial  government,  but  that  we  can  ever  make  the  Filipinos 
love  us  or  trust  us  while  we  rule  them  through  a  carpet-bag  govern- 
ment, is  absurd. 

If  the  republicans  had  read  the  speeches  of  Abraham  Lincoln' 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  317 

as  much  recently  as  they  did  in  former  years,  they  would  have 
known  that  hatred  of  an  alien  government  is  a  natural  thing  and  a 
thing  to  be  expected  everywhere.  Lincoln  said  that  it  was  God  Him- 
self who  placed  in  every  human  heart  the  love  of  liberty.  Lincoln 
spoke  the  truth.  Love  of  liberty  is  linked  to  life  itself,  and  "what 
God  hath  joined  together  let  no  man  put  asunder." 


A   DEMOCRATIC    DUTY. 

With  the  opening  of  the  first  session  of  the  Fifty-seventh  congress 
the  congressional  campaign  of  1902  begins.  The  Philippine  ques- 
tion will  be  the  most  important  matter  considered  by  this  congress 
and  in  all  probability  the  most  important  issue  in  the  campaign 
of  1902.  The  democrats  not  only  have  an  opportunity  to  make 
a  strong  appeal  to  the  country  on  this  question,  but  it  is  their  duty 
to  do  so.  The  republicans  do  not  dare  to  meet  the  issue  of 
imperialism  openly  and  honestly;  they  do  not  dare  to  invite  judg- 
ment upon  a  colonial  policy;  they  do  not  dare  to  candidly  avow 
their  purpose  to  hold  the  Philippine  Islands  permanently.  A 
large  majority  of  the  rank  and  file  of  the  republican  party  cherish 
the  belief  that  their  party  intends  ultimate  independence  for  the 
Filipinos.  The  democrats  can  remove  this  delusion  by  compelling 
the  republicans  to  accept  or  reject  the  democratic  plan  of  dealing 
with  the  Philippine  question. 

The  democratic  platform  of  1900  not  only  presented  a  plan  for 
the  peaceful  and  permanent  settlement  of  the  Philippine  question, 
but  it  presented  the  only  complete  plan  that  has  been  offered  to 
the  American  people.  It  reads  as  follows : 

WE  CONDEMN  AND  DENOUNCE  THE  PHILIPPINE 
POLICY  OF  THE  PRESENT  ADMINISTRATION.  IT  HAS 
INVOLVED  THE  REPUBLIC  IN  UNNECESSARY  WAR, 
SACRIFICED  THE  LIVES  OF  MANY  OF  OUR  NOBLEST 
SONS  AND  PLACED  THE  UNITED  STATES,  PREVIOUSLY 
KNOWN  AND  APPLAUDED  THROUGHOUT  THE  WORLD 
AS  THE  CHAMPION  OF  FREEDOM,  IN  THE  FALSE  AND 
UN-AMERICAN  POSITION  OF  CRUSHING  WITH  MILI- 
TARY FORCE  THE  EFFORTS  OF  OUR  FORMER  ALLIES 
TO  ACHIEVE  LIBERTY  AND  SELF-GOVERNMENT.  THE 
FILIPINOS  CANNOT  BE  CITIZENS  WITHOUT  EN- 


318  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

DANGERING  OUK  CIVILIZATION;  THEY  CANNOT  BE 
SUBJECTS  WITHOUT  IMPERILLING  OUR  FORM  OF 
GOVERNMENT,  AND  AS  WE  ARE  NOT  WILLING  TO  SUR- 
RENDER OUR  CIVILIZATION  OR  TO  CONVERT  THE 
REPUBLIC  INTO  AN  EMPIRE,  WE  FAVOR  AN  IMME- 
DIATE DECLARATION  OF  THE  NATION'S  PURPOSE  TO 
GIVE  THE  FILIPINOS,  FIRST,  A  STAPLE  FORM  OF 
GOVERNMENT;  SECOND,  INDEPENDENCE;  AND, 
THIRD,  PROTECTION  FROM  OUTSIDE  INTERFERENCE, 
SUCH  AS  HAS  BEEN  GIVEN  FOR  NEARLY  A  CENTURY 
TO  THE  REPUBLICS  OF  CENTRAL  AND  SOUTH 
AMERICA. 

The  democrats  can  afford  to  take  their  stand  upon  this  plat- 
form and  challenge  the  attack  of  imperialists.  More  than  a  year 
has  elapsed  since  the  election  of  1900,  which,  according  to  the 
republican  prophecy,  was  to  terminate  the  war  in  the  Philippines. 
Every  month  has  shown  more  clearly  the  failure  of  republican 
arguments  and  the  evils  of  an  imperialistic  polic}r.  The  demo- 
cratic platform  charges  that  imperialism  "has  involved  the  re- 
public in  unnecessary  war,  sacrificed  the  lives  of  many  of  our 
noblest  sons  and  placed  the  United  States,  previously  known  and 
applauded  throughout  the  world  as  the  champion  of  freedom,  in 
the  false  and  un-American  position  of  crushing  with  military 
force  the  efforts  of  our  allies  to  achieve  liberty  and  self-govern- 
ment." 

The  war  is  unnecessary  because  the  Filipinos  are  ready  to  lay 
down  their  arms  whenever  independence  is  promised  them.  The 
sacrifice  of  life  has  continued  unabated  and  the  imperialists  seem 
as  little  concerned  about  the  death  of  American  soldiers  as  they 
do  about  the  killing  of  the  natives.  The  effect  of  imperialism 
has  manifested  itself  in  the  failure  of  republican  leaders  to  ex- 
press any  sympathy  for  the  Boers,  or  to  feel  an  interest  in  their 
struggles  for  liberty  and  self-government.  The  indictment  which 
the  democratic  party  made  against  the  republican  administration 
was  sufficiently  sustained  by  the  events  that  had  transpired  prior 
to  the  convention,  and  the  trend  of  events  since  that  time  has 
furnished  overwhelming  evidence  in  support  of  that  indictment. 
Let  the  democratic  leaders  in  the  senate  and  house  present  this 
evidence  in  their  speeches  so  that  it  may  reach  the  entire  country 
through  the  Congressional  Record. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  319 

Why  do  the  republicans  hesitate  to  outline  a  policy?  The 
reason  is  suggested  in  a  portion  of  the  platform  already  quoted: 
"The  Filipinos  cannot  be  citizens  without  endangering  our  civili- 
zation; they  cannot  be  subjects  without  imperilling  our  form  of 
government." 

The  republicans  are  not  willing  to  say  that  they  intend  to  make 
the  Filipinos  citizens  with  a  voice  in  the  conducting  of  our  (and 
their)  federal  government.  This  would  be  to  propose  a  hetero- 
geneous government  which  would  ultimately  fall  to  pieces  be- 
cause of  diversity  of  races  and  interests.  Neither  are  they  will- 
ing to  declare  that  the  Filipinos  are  to  be  kept  subjects  forever, 
for  this  would  be  plainly  inconsistent  with  our  form  of  govern- 
ment,, our  traditions  and  the  well-nigh  universal  sentiment  of  our 
people.  When  one  understands  that  we  must  put  the  Filipinos 
into  training  for  ultimate  citizenship  or  condemn  them  to  per- 
petual servitude  under  a  colonial  system;  when  one  understands 
that  we  must  either  hold  before  the  Filipinos  the  hope  of  full 
participation  in  our  government  or  doom  them  to  despair, — • 
when  one  understands  this  alternative  he  readily  sees  why  the 
republicans  refuse  to  divulge  their  purpose. 

The  democratic  plan  for  the  settlement  of  the  Philippine  ques- 
tion is  identical  with  the  plan  proposed  by  the  republicans  for 
the  settlement  of  the  Cuban  question,  and  the  republicans  can- 
not reject  the  democratic  plan  without  showing  some  essential 
difference  between  the  rights  of  the  Cubans  and  the  rights  of 
the  Filipinos.  First,  a  stable  form  of  government  must  be  estab- 
lished in  the  place  of  the  one  overthrown  by  us,  but  it  will 
be  easy  to  establish  this  stable  government  when  the  Filipinos 
know  that  it  is  to  be  their  government.  There  would  be  insurrec- 
tion now  in  Cuba  if  we  had  treated  the  Cubans  as  we  have  treated 
the  Filipinos;  there  would  now  be  peace  in  the  Philippines  if 
we  had  treated  the  Filipinos  as  we  have  treated  the  Cubans. 
We  have  not  scrupulously  observed  the  promise  made  to  the  Cu- 
bans, and  yet  the  confidence  which  the  Cubans  have  felt  in  ulti- 
mate independence  has  led  them  to  submit  even  when  our  demands 
seemed  unreasonable  and  unjust. 

Independence  is  the  desire  and  the  right  of  the  Filipinos.  If 
we  denied  them  independence  and  gave  them  full  citizenship  in 
our  government,  it  might  possibly  be  satisfactory  to  them,  although 
it  would  be  dangerous  to  us,  but  the  republican  leaders  do  not 


320  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

promise  them  citizenship  in  this  government  as  a  substitute  for 
an  independent  government  of  their  own.  The  Filipinos  are  not 
enjoying  the  guarantees  of  our  constitution;  they  are  enduring 
a  carpet-bag  government  such  as  the  American  people  would  not 
submit  to.  We  are  not  giving  the  Filipinos  American  liberty, 
American  institutions  or  an  American  constitution.  We  are 
giving  them  an  arbitrary  and  despotic  government,  for  a  govern- 
ment imposed  by  force  and  administered  according  to  foreign  ideas 
is  always  despotic,  no  matter  how  benevolent  may  be  the  purpose 
of  those  who  administer  it. 

In  proposing  protection  from  outside  interference  the  demo- 
crats offer  to  the  Philippine  republic  the  same  guardianship  which 
has  been  given  to  the  republics  of  Central  and  South  America,  a 
guardianship  that  gives  to  the  smaller  republics  the  protection 
of  our  strength  without  making  them  the  victims  of  our  greed. 
For  seventy-five  years  the  Monroe  doctrine  has  been  a  bulwark 
to  the  independent  governments  which  have  sprung  up  to  the 
south  of  us.  It  has  not  involved  us  in  any  considerable  expense, 
but  it  has  been  immensely  valuable  both  to  the  wards  and  to 
the  guardian.  When  England  recently  asserted  the  right  to  fix 
arbitrarily  the  boundary  line  between  her  South  American  posses- 
sions and  Venezuela,  it  only  required  a  firm,  but  friendly  warning 
from  the  United  States  to  prevent  a  conflict  and  secure  equity 
and  justice  for  Venezuela. 

No  nation  in  Europe  would  wage  war  against  the  United  States 
in  order  to  secure  the  Philippine  islands,  and  it  is  doubtful  if 
any  of  the  leading  nations  of  Europe  would  be  willing  to  allow 
any  other  European  nation  to  own  the  Philippine  islands. 

The  republicans  said  that  it  would  cost  us  an  enormous  sum 
of  money  to  extend  the  Monroe  doctrine  to  the  Philippine  islands. 
It  has  already  cost  us  an  immense  sum  to  attempt  to  assert  our 
own  authority  in  those  islands.  Against  the  republican  prophecy 
we  place  republican  history;  against  the  ungrounded  fear  of  ex- 
pense we  place  the  money  already  expended.  When  we  try  to 
govern  the  Filipinos  against  their  will  and  tax  them  without  repre- 
sentation, they  fight  us,  and  we  have  found  that  they  are  able 
to  force  us  to  vast  expenditures.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  we  pro- 
tect them  from  outside  interference,  they  fight  the  nation  which 
attacks  them  instead  of  fighting  us,  and  if  they  cart  give  other 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  121 

%y 

nations  as  much  trouble  as  they  have  given  us  they  will  not  re- 
quire much  help  from  us  to  maintain  their  independence. 

The  democratic  position  is  not  only  sound,  but  it  is  unassail- 
able; it  rests  upon  the  Declaration  of  Independence;  it  is  in  har- 
mony with  the  constitution  and  the  bill  of  rights.  Now  that 
the  party  can  choose  the  battleground,  let  it  challenge  the  re- 
publicans to  attack  the  conscience  and  the  moral  sentiment  of 
the  people  as  well  as  the  principles  of  free  government.  If  the 
democrats  will  present  a  united  front  on  this  issue — an  issue 
upon  which  the  Kansas  City  convention  was  unanimous — there 
is  hope  of  a  victory  that  will  not  only  reinstate  the  democratic 
party,  but  restore  the  government  to  its  old  foundations  and 
the  nation  to  that  high  position  among  the  nations  to  which 
its  ideas  and  its  ideals  have  entitled  it. 


THE    YELLOW     PERIL. 

It  will  be  necessary  for  the  present  congress  to  take  action  upon 
the  Chinese  exclusion  act  which  expires  by  limitation  May  24, 
1902.  The  Kansas  City  platform  contained  the  following  plank 
on  the  subject : 

We  favor  the  continuance  and  strict  enforcement  of  the  Chinese 
exclusion  law  and  its  application  to  the  same  classes  of  all  Asiatic 
races. 

This  plank  was  unanimously  agreed  upon  by  the  platform 
committee,  and  there  was  no  dissent  from  it  among  the  delegates. 
It  is  to  be  expected,  therefore,  that  the  proposition  to  extend  the 
Chinese  exclusion  act  will  receive  the  support  of  all  the  democrats 
in  the  house  and  senate.  The  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  received  a 
letter  a  few  days  ago  from  a  democrat  who  complained  that  the 
laboring  men  of  the  Pacific  slope  had  ignored  the  Chinese  question 
in  the  last  campaign  and  suggested  that  it  would  only  be  a 
merited  punishment  if  the  republican  party  refused  to  extend  the 
exclusion  act.  It  is  not  unnatural  that  some  resentment  should 
be  felt  toward  those  who  supported  the  republican  party  in  spite 
of  the  dangers  which  republican  supremacy  involves,  and  yet  no 
one  can  justify  himself  in  either  supporting  a  bad  policy  or  in 
failing  to  protest  against  it  merely  because  the  policy  would  punish 
some  who  ought  to  have  exerted  themselves  to  prevent  it.  That 


322  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

many  of  the  republican  leaders  are  in  favor  of  a  policy  that  will 
flood  the  country  with  cheap  Chinese  labor  is  true,  and  that  an 
imperial  policy  tends  to  lend  encouragement  to  the  cheap  labor 
proposition,  is  also  true,  but  the  failure  of  the  laboring  men  to 
see  these  dangers  in  advance  would  not  justify  democrats  in  re- 
maining quiet  on  the  subject,  although  the  republicans  are  in  power 
and  are  responsible  for  legislation. 

The  Chinese  question  is  one  that  effects  the  entire  country, 
not  the  Pacific  Coast  alone  or  the  laboring  men  alone.  It  is  true 
that  the  Pacific  Coast  would  feel  the  evil  effects  of  Chinese  emigra- 
tion first,  and  it  is  also  true  that  the  laboring  men  would  come 
into  immediate  contact  with  oriental  labor,  but  in  its  ultimate 
influence  the  subject  touches  all  parts  of  the  country  and  reaches 
all  classes.  The  question  is  whether  w.e  are  going  to  build  up 
a  strong,  independent,  upright  and  patriotic  people  and  develop  a 
civilization  that  will  exert  a  helpful  influence  on  all  the  world, 
or  whether  we  are  going  to  be  a  greedy,  grasping  nation,  forgetful 
of  high  ideals  and  concerned  only  in  the  making  of  money. 

Chinese  emigration  is  defended  by  two  classes  of  people.  First, 
by  those,  comparatively  few  in  number,  who  believe  that  universal 
brotherhood  requires  us  to  welcome  to  our  shores  all  people  of 
all  lands.  This  is  the  sentimental  argument  advanced  in  favor 
of  Chinese  emigration.  There  is  no  more  reason  why  we  should 
construe  brotherhood  to  require  the  admission  of  all  people  to 
our  country  than  there  is  that  we  should  construe  brotherhood  to 
require  the  dissolution  of  family  ties.  The  family  is  a  unit; 
it  is  the  place  where  character  and  virtue  and  usefulness  are  de- 
veloped, and  from  the  family  a  good  or  evil  influence  emanates. 
It  is  not  necessary  nor  even  wise  that  the  family  environment 
should  be  broken  up  or  that  all  who  desire  entrance  should  be 
admitted  to  the  family  circle.  Tn  a  larger  sense  a  nation  is  a 
family.  It  is  the  center  for  fhe  cultivation  of  national  character, 
national  virtue  and  national  usefulness.  A  nation  is  under  no 
obligation  to  the  outside  world  to  admit  anybody  or  anything  that 
would  injuriously  effect  the  national  family;  in  fact  it  is  under 
obligation  to  itself  not  to  do  so.  The  influence  of  the  United 
States  will  be  much  more  polent  for  good  if  we  remain  a  homo- 
geneous nation  with  all  citizens  in  full  sympathy  witTi  all  other 
citizens.  No  distinct  race  like  the  Chinese  can  come  into  this 
country  without  exciting,  a  friction  and  a  race-  prejudice  which 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  323 

will  make  it  more  difficult  for  us  to  exercise  a  wholesome  influence 
upon  the  Chinese  in  China,  not  to  speak  of  our  influence  on 
other  nations. 

Let  us  educate  the  Chinese  who  desire  to  learn  of  American 
institutions;  let  us  offer  courtesy  and  protection  to  those  who 
come  here  to  travel  and  investigate,  but  it  will  not  be  of  permanent 
benefit  to  either  the  Chinese  or  to  us  fo  invite  them  to  become 
citizens  or  to  permit  them  to  labor  here  and  carry  the  proceeds 
of  their  toil  back  to  their  own  country. 

The  second,  and  by  far  the  larger  class,  embraces  those  who 
advocate  Chinese  emigration  on  the  ground  that  it  will  furnish 
cheap  labor  for  household  and  factory  work.  There  is  no  force 
in  the  argument  that  is  made  by  some  that  it  is  difficult  to  secure 
girls  to  do  housework.  If  domestic  service  is  not  popular  as 
compared  with  other  work,  it  is  because  the  pay  is  not  sufficient 
to  make  it  attractive  and  the  remedy  lies  in  better  wages.  Labor 
can  be  secured  for  any  and  every  honorable  position  when  the  price 
is  sufficient  to  attract  it,  and  the  demand  for  Chinese  servants 
comes  with  poor  grace  from  those  who  often  spend  on  a  single 
social  entertainment  as  much  as  a  servant's  wages  would  amount 
to  in  an  entire  year.  At  this  time  when  skilled  and  intelligent 
American  labor  is  able  to  compete  in  foreign  markets  with  the 
cheapest  labor  in  the  world,  it  is  absurd  to  talk  about  the  necessity 
for  cheap  factory  hands. 

The  increase  in  Japanese  immigration,  or  rather  importation 
(for  large  numbers  of  them  are  brought  for  speciSc  purposes) 
has  been  referred  to  in  a  former  issue  of  THE  COMMONER.  It 
was  there  suggested  that  the  Japanese  government  would  doubtless, 
if  asked  to  do  so,  place  restrictions  upon  Japanese  emigration 
that  would  make  it  unnecessary  for  us  to  deal  with  the  subject 
by  legislation.  This  matter  should  at  once  be  brought  to  the 
attention  of  the  Japanese  authorities,  and  unless  sufficient  and 
satisfactory  action  is  taken  by  the  home  government  the  Chinese 
exclusion  act  should  be  made  "broad  enough  to  extend  to  Japanese 
of  the  same  class. 

The  subject  of  oriental  emigration  cannot  be  discussed  without 
giving  some  consideration  to  the  danger  of  cheap  labor  from  the 
Philippine  islands.  It  will  soon  be  necessary  to  legislate  on  this 
subject.  If  the  Filipinos  are  permitted  to  come  here  there  is  danger 
that  the  Philippine  question  will  become  only  second  in  aggravation 


324  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

to  the  Chinese  question.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  Filipinos  are 
prohibited  from  coming  here  (if  a  republic  can  prohibit  the  inhabi- 
tants of  one  part  from  visiting  another  part  of  the  republic),  will 
it  not  excite  a  just  protest  on  the  part  of  the  Filipinos?  How 
can  we  excuse  ourselves  if  we  insist  upon  opening  the  Philippine 
islands  to  the  invasion  of  American  capital,  American  speculators, 
and  American  task-masters,  and  yet  close  our  doors  to  those 
Filipinos  who,  driven  from  home,  may  seek  an  asylum  here? 

The  democratic  party  should  take  a  strong  and  aggressive  posi- 
tion on  this  question.  It  can  afford  to  oppose  Chinese  emigration 
and  insist  upon  the  unity  and  homogeneousness  of  our  nation.  It 
can  afford  to  insist  that  Japanese  laborers  shall  be  treated  the  same 
as  Chinese  laborers  and  excluded,  by  agreement  with  the  Japanese 
government  if  possible,  by  congressional  legislation  if  necessary. 

The  democratic  leaders  should  further  point  out  that  the  Philip- 
pine question  involves  the  same  menace  to  our  country,  and  that 
as  we  can  neither  afford  to  admit  the  Filipinos  nor  yet  make  a  dis- 
tinction between  different  parts  of  the  republic,  we  should  at  once 
declare  our  purpose  to  give  the  Filipinos  independence  as  soon  as 
a  stable  government  can  be  established. 


EXIT,  JONES  OF  NEVADA. 

Senator  Jones  of  Nevada  has  by  his  return  to  the  republican  party 
given  much  joy  to  the  gold  organs,  both  republican  and  democratic. 
He  claims  to  be  as  firm  a  believer  in  bimetallism  as  when  he  left 
the  republican  party,  but  says  that  the  enormous  output  of  gold 
"has  accomplished  what  bimetallism  would  have  accomplished," 
and  that  silver  is  dead.  He  adds  that  he  has  been  in  harmony  with 
the  republican  party  on  all  other  issues,  and  can,  therefore,  easily 
return.  It  is  true  that  the  senator  from  Nevada,  distinguished 
by  his  great  service  in  behalf  of  bimetallism,  has  been  in  harmony 
with  the  republican  party  on  all  questions  save  the  silver  question 
alone,  and  therefore  his  apostacy  at  this  time  is  not  surprising, 
although  much  to  be  regretted. 

If  Senator  Jones  will  review  the  arguments  which  he  himself  has 
made,  he  will  be  convinced  that  the  output  of  gold  has  not  been  suf- 
ficient to  accomplish  "what  bimetallism  would  have  accomplished." 
The  restoration  of  bimetallism  would  have  raised  silver  to  $1.29  an 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  325 

ounce;  it  would  have  brought  into  full  monetary  use  throughout 
the  world  four  billions  of  silver  which  has  been  constantly  legis- 
lated against.  It  would  have  raised  prices  to  the  former  bimetallic 
level  and  placed  the  business  of  the  world  upon  a  solid  basis.  The 
output  of  gold  has  not  done  this,  and  as  a  mere  matter  of  mathe- 
matics it  is  easy  to  demonstrate  that  it  will  require  a  great  many 
years  for  the  present  output  to  furnish  a  quantity  of  gold  sufficient 
to  accomplish  "what  bimetallism  would  have  accomplished."  But 
before  gold  can  be  used  to  take  the  place  of  silver  we  must  sub- 
tract from  the  annual  product,  first,  enough  for  use  in  the  arts; 
second,  enough  to  cover  lost  coins  and  abrasion,  and,  third,  enough 
to  furnish  the  gold  using  nations  with  the  annual  increase  necessary 
to  keep  pace  with  the  demand  for  money.  When  Senator  Sher- 
man was  defending  the  act  of  1890,  known  as  the  Sherman  law, 
he  argued  that  we  needed  fifty-four  millions  of  new  money  every 
year  to  keep  pace  with  population  and  industry.  If  that  quantity 
is  necessary  for  this  country  alone,  what  sum  would  be  sufficient 
to  supply  all  the  gold  using  nations  of  the  world  ? 

The  financiers  of  all  countries  oppose  any  permanent  rise  in 
prices  because  that  would  lessen  the  purchasing  power  of  the  dollar 
and  depreciate  the  exchange  value  of  their  money  and  securities. 
If,  they  thought  there  was  any  danger  of  the  gold  supply  being 
sufficient  to  accomplish  "what  bimetallism  would  have  accom- 
plished," they  would  be  clamoring  for  the  use  of  gold  in  the  retire- 
ment of  uncovered  paper,  and,  finally,  they  would  demand  a  limita- 
tion of  the  coinage  of  gold.  There  has  been  a  rise  in  the  level  of 
prices  since  1896,  but  a  part  of  this  was  the  natural  rebound  after 
panic  conditions,  part  was  due  to  the  prevailing  wars,  and  a  part  to 
the  manipulation  of  prices  by  trusts.  We  have  not  yet  reached 
normal  conditions,  and,  therefore,  cannot  say  how  much  the  general 
level  of  prices  will  be  increased  by  the  output  of  gold.  We  do  know, 
however,  that  gold  has  not  raised,  and  probably  will  not  raise  prices 
to  anything  like  the  bimetallic  level.  We  cannot  accept  the  gold 
standard  as  final  until  we  are  sure  that  we  have  gold  enough,  not 
only  for  the  nations  that  now  use  it,  but  for  the  nations  that  will  be 
ultimately  driven  to  it  if  the  United  States  surrenders  its  conten- 
tion for  bimetallism.  Where  would  the  three  hundred  million  people 
of  India  and  the  four  hundred  million  people  of  China  secure 
gold  if  they  were  to  go  to  the  gold  standard?  What  nation  has  any 
considerable  gold  to  spare? 


326  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

It  is  evident  that  Nevada's  senator  has  reached  a  point  where  his 
interest  in  other  policies  of  the  republican  party  outweighs  his  at- 
tachment for  bimetallism.  The  fact  that  he  is  not  alarmed  by  the 
republican  advocacy  of  a  "branch  bank,"  an  "asset  currency/'  and 
trusts,  or  by  the  corporate  domination  and  the  imperial  policy  of 
the  republican  party,  shows  that  devotion  to  silver  was  due  more 
to  the  fact  that  he  came  from  a  mining  state  than  to  any  broad 
and  deep  sympathy  with  the  masses  of  the  people.  If  his  belief 
in  bimetallism  had  grown  out  of  his  desire  to  see  the  government 
administered  according  to  the  doctrine  of  "equal  rights  to  all 
and  special  privileges  to  none,"  no  increase  in  the  produc- 
tion of  gold  could  have  carried  him  back  to  the  republican 
party.  He  gained  his  reputation  as  the  champion  of  the  rights  of 
the  people  on  one  question — the  money  question.  Let  us  see  if 
he  ever  makes  a  speech  in  favor  of  present  republican  policies  that 
will  compare  with  the  speech  which  he  made  in  denunciation  of 
the  gold  standard. 


CAN  IT  BE? 

Eeferring  to  the  great  railroad  trusts,  the  Chicago  Tribune  says: 

An  issue  of  tremendous  consequence  is  thus  being  brought  to  the 
whole  country.  It  is  a  matter  for  conjecture  if  these  railroad  and 
financial  manipulators  comprehend  what  this  issue  is.  The  failure 
of  full  and  effective  government  regulation  which  the  roads  have 
so  far  succeeded  in  breaking  down  means  government  ownership, 
nothing  less  than  that.  And  toward  just  that  conclusion  the  com- 
binations are  forcing  the  country.  It  will  be  a  great  mistake  to 
suppose  that  the  present  patience  of  the  people  with  the  growing 
domination  of  monopoly  is  a  test  of  what  the  public  temper  will 
always  prove  to  be. 

What  right  has  the  Tribune  to  "contribute  to  the  disquiet  of  the 
people" ? 

What  right  has  the  Tribune  "to  seek  to  make  the  people  discon- 
tented" ? 

What  right  has  the  Tribune  to  "attack  property"? 

Does  not  the  Tribune  know  that  trusts  are  "indispensable  to 
progress,"  that  "consolidation  is  the  decree  of  destiny,"  that  a  rail- 
road octopus  for  the  United  States  of  America  will  make  us  what 
we  so  long  have  wished  to  be,  "a  world  power"  ? 


The  Commoner  Condensed  327 

The  Tribune  threatens  government  ownership,,  which  the  Tribune 
and  other  republican  newspapers  have  so  often  denounced  as  a 
populist  fallacy.  What  is  the  world  coming  to  when  so  strong  a 
republican  newspaper  as  the  Chicago  Tribune  finds  it  necessary  to 
raise  its  voice  in  protest  against  monopoly  and  goes  so  far  as  to 
threaten  a  populist  remedy  for  a  republican  disease? 

Can  it  be  that  after  all  there  is  evil  in  the  trust  system?  Can 
it  be  after  all  that  consolidation  and  destruction  of  competition  are 
not  good  for  the  public  welfare  ? 


A  STABLE  DOLLAE. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  asks  for  a  definition  of  an  honest 
dollar.  Stability  is  the  test  of  honesty.  An  absolutely  honest  dol- 
lar would  be  one  whose  average  purchasing  power  would  remain 
the  same  from  year  to  year.  The  advocates  of  the  gold  standard 
are  in  the  habit  of  speaking  of  the  gold  dollar  as  an  honest  dollar, 
but  one  of  the  leading  monometallists,  Professor  Laughlin,  in  his 
work  on  bimetallism,  says:  "Monometallists  do  not  (as  is  often 
said)  believe  that  gold  remains  absolutely  stable  in  value.  They 
hold  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  'standard  of  value'  for  future 
payments  in  gold  or  silver  which  remains  absolutely  invariable." 

This  must  be  admitted  by  every  intelligent  student  of  the  science 
of  money.  The  value  of  the  dollar  depends  on  the  number  of  dol- 
lars and  an  increase  or  decrease  in  the  volume  of  money  (out  of 
proportion  to  the  change  in  the  demand  for  money)  will  affect 
prices.  For  instance,  if  all  the  world  used  the  gold  standard  and 
the  production  of  gold  suddenly  increased,  say  two  or  threefold, 
the  increase  in  prices  would  be  very  great.  The  same  effect,  though 
in  the  opposite  direction,  would  be  noticed  if  the  supply  of  money 
suddenly  decreased. 

Professor  Laughlin,  discussing  the  subject  further,  says : 

'  As  regards  national  debts,  it  is  distinctly  averred  that  neither 
gold  nor  silver  forms  a  just  measure  of  deferred  payments,  and  that 
if  justice  in  long  contracts  is  sought  for,  we  should  not  seek  it  by 
the  doubtful  and  untried  expedient  of  international  bimetallism, 
but  hv  the  clear  and  certain  method  of  a  multiple  standard,  a  unit 
based  upon  the  selling  prices  of  a  number  of  articles  of  general  con- 


328  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

sumption.    A  long-time  contract  would  thereby  be  paid  at  its  ma- 
turity by  the  same  purchasing  power  as  was  given  in  the  beginning. 

Here  is  a  clear  recognition  of  two  facts,  first,  that  .justice  lies  in 
absolute  stability,  and,  second,  that  human  ingenuity  can  only  ap- 
proximate, never  reach,  perfect  stability.  A  dollar  resting  upon 
two  metals  more  nearly  approaches  stability,  and,  therefore,  justice, 
than  a  dollar  resting  upon  one  metal.  According  to  the  same  process 
of  reasoning,  a  dollar  resting  upon  a  hundred  articles  would  make 
a  still  nearer  approach  to  stability. 

The  multiple  standard  is  not,  however,  deemed  practicable.  Both 
gold  and  silver  fluctuate  (the  production  of  gold  has  fluctuated  more 
often  and  more  violently  than  the  production  of  silver)  but  they 
have  not  usually  fluctuated  in  concert.  When  part  of  the  nations 
used  gold  and  part  of  them  silver,  so  that  all  of  the  product  of 
both  metals  could  find  a  place  for  coinage,  it  did  not  make  so  much 
difference  which  standard  a  nation  had,  for  both  of  the  metals  con- 
tributed to  make  up  the  standard  money  of  the  world,  but  with 
all  the  nations  using  gold  alone,  or  all  the  nations  using  silver 
alone,  the  situation  would  be  different.  If  the  gold  standard  ever 
does  produce  a  stable  currency  it  will  disappoint  the  gold  standard 
advocates,  for  they  want  a  rising  dollar. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  329 


XVI. 
LET  OUR  IDEAS  CONQUEB. 

One  of  the  presidentes  of  Lipa,  Batanzas  Province,  P.  I.,  has 
addressed  a  letter  to  the  "Presidentes  of  the  Province"  inviting 
them  to  join  him.  in  sending  two  young  men,  to  be  selected  from 
the  students  by  competition,  to  the  United  States  for  the  purpose  of 
studying  American  institutions.  He  offers  to  give  thirty  dollars 
(Mexican  money)  a  month,  and  asks  the  other  "Presidentes"  to 
contribute  a  like  proportion  of  their  salaries. 

It  is  a  worthy  precedent,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  it  will  be 
followed  in  other  provinces.  Of  course  these  Filipino  boys  cannot 
come  here  to  study  our  institutions  without  becoming  aware  of  the 
inconsistency  between  our  professions  at  home  and  our  practices 
abroad,  but  their  acquaintance  with  our  form  of  government  will 
fit  them  to  help  us  to  conquer  the  world  with  our  ideas  after  we 
have  withdrawn  the  authority  which  now  makes  subjects  out  of  the 
Filipinos. 

The  country  can  do  infinitely  more  for  itself  and  infinitely  more 
for  the  world  by  educating  representatives  of  foreign  nations  and 
sending  them  back  to  apply  American  principles  to  their  social  and 
political  problems  than  it  can  by  wars  of  conquest.  No  alien  govern- 
ment will  ever  meet  the  expectations  or  satisfy  the  longings  of  any 
people.  The  foreigner  lacks  the  race  sympathy  that  is  necessary 
to  the  upbuilding  of  a  nation.  Americans  who  go  to  the  Philippine 
islands  will  find  it  impossible  to  withstand  the  temptation  to  use 
the  government  for  exploitation — it  has  been  so  with  carpet-bag 
governments  in  the  past  and  it  will  be  so  in  the  future.  Human 
nature  has  not  changed  much,  and  is  yet  far  too  weak  to  exercise 
arbitrary  and  irresponsible  power. 

A  hundred  students  educated  in  the  United  States  and  returned 
to  the  nations  of  the  Orient  would  do  more  toward  extending  our 
trade  and  our  civilization  than  an  army  of  an  hundred  thousand 


330  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

men.  The  federal  government  could  well  afford  to  establish  a  school 
and  educate  all  the  students  that  would  be  sent  here  from  South 
America  and  Asia.  The  cost  to  the  nation  would  be  small  compared 
with  the  cost  of  a  single  war  of  conquest,  and  the  profit  would  be 
immeasurably  greater. 


ANTI-ANARCHY  BILLS. 

It  is  probable  that  a  number  of  bills  directed  against  anarchy 
will  be  introduced  at  the  coming  session  of  congress,  and  all  of  them 
should  be  examined  carefully  to  see  that  freedom  of  speech  is  not 
attacked  under  the  guise  of  an  attempt  to  extinguish  anarchy. 
Congressman  Curtis  of  Kansas  has  given  out  for  publication  a  bill 
which  he  has  drawn  for  the  suppression  and  punishment  of  anar- 
chists. The  text  of  the  bill  is  as  follows : 

Sec.  1.  That  every  person  who  shall,  within  the  United  States,  un- 
lawfully and  wilfully  kill  or  assault  with  intent  to  kill  the  presi- 
dent or  vice-president,  a  member  of  the  president's  cabinet,  the 
chief  justice  or  a  justice  of  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States, 
shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  crime  against  the  government  of  the 
United  States  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall  suffer  death. 

Sec.  2.  That  if  two  or  more  persons  within  the  United  States 
conspire  to  put  the  president  or  vice-president  of  the  United  States, 
a  member  of  the  president's  cabinet,  the  chief  justice  or  a  justice 
of  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States  to  death,  each  of  them 
shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  crime  against  the  government  of  the 
United  States  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall  suffer  death. 

Sec.  3.  That  every  person  who  shall,  within  the  United  States, 
incite,  encourage,  promote  or  advocate  an  assault,  with  intent  to 
kill,  upon  the  president  or  vice-president  of  the  United  States,  a 
member  of  the  president's  cabinet,  the  chief  justice  or  a  justice  of 
the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a 
crime  against  the  government  of  the  United  States,  and  upon  con- 
viction thereof  shall  suffer  death.  Provided,  that  nothing  in  this 
section  shall  be  held  or  construed  to  prevent  a  candid,  full  and  fair 
discussion  of  public  events  and  public  measures,  nor  to  prevent  just 
and  fair  criticism  of  any  public  officer. 

Sec.  4.  That  every  person  who  shall,  within  the  United  States, 
incite,  encourage,  promote  or  advance  the  overthrow  of  the  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  or  who  shall  diffuse  the  doctrine  of 
anarchy,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  crime  against  the  government 
of  the  United  States,  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall  suffer  death. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  331 

Provided  that  nothing  in  this  section  shall  be  held  or  construed  to 
prevent  a  candid,  full  and  free  discussion  of  public  events  and 
public  measures  nor  to  prevent  just  and  fair  criticism  of  any  public 
officer. 

Sec.  5.  That  every  person  who  shall  join,  organize  or  aid  and 
assist  in  organizing  or  belong  to  an  anarchist  society,  club  or  organ- 
ization, or  who  shall  join,  organize  or  aid  or  assist  in  organizing 
or  belong  to  any  other  society,  club  or  organization,  the  object  of 
which  is  to  overthrow,  subvert  or  change  the  government  of  the 
United  States,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  crime  against  the  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall  be 
punished  by  confinement  at  hard  labor  in  any  United  States  peni- 
tentiary not  less  than  twenty  years  or  during  life  in  the  discretion 
of  the  court. 

Sec.  6.  That  every  person  who  shall  knowingly  write,  print  or 
publish,  or  shall  cause  to  be  written,  printed  or  published,  any  edi- 
torial, article,  letter,  circular,  picture  or  cartoon,  intended  and  de- 
signed to  expose  the  president  or  vice-president  of  the  United  States, 
any  member  of  the  president's  cabinet,  the  chief  justice  or  any  jus- 
tice of  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States,  to  public  hatred, 
scorn  or  contempt,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  crime  against  the 
government  of  the  United  States,  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall 
be  punished  by  confinement  at  hard  labor  in  the  United  States  peni- 
tentiaries not  more  than  ten  years,  nor  less  than  on  year.  Provided 
that  nothing  herein  shall  be  held  or  construed  to  prevent  candid, 
full  and  free  presentation  of  public  events  and  public  measures,  nor 
to  prevent  just  and  fair  criticism  of  any  public  officer. 

Sec.  7.  That  all  prosecutions  under  this  act  shall  be  in  the  United 
States  circuit  or  district  courts  of  the  district  wherein  the  crime 
was  committed. 

A  federal  commission  is  now  revising  the  laws  and  has  suggested 
a  bill  which  provides  that  killing,  or  assaulting  with  intent  to  kill, 
a  president,  vice-president,  member  of  the  cabinet  or  judge  of  the 
supreme  court  shall  be  punishable  with  death  if  the  assault  is  made 
upon  the  official  for  the  purpose  of  obstructing  or  interfering  with 
the  administration  of  the  government.  This  qualification  is  an 
essential  one  and  should  be  added  to  Congressman  Curtis'  bill.  The 
commission  suggested  it  upon  the  theory  that  it  was  necessary  in 
order  to  give  the  federal  government  jurisdiction,  but  it  is  defensible 
upon  the  ground  of  public  policy  as  well.  If  the  public  official  is 
attacked  by  one  who  aims  to  strike  at  the  government  through  the 
official,  the  attack  becomes  an  offense  against  the  people.  If,  how- 
ever, the  assault  is  a  personal  matter,  and  not  directed  against  the 
officer  in  his  official  capacity,  it  is  entirely  different.  To  protect 


332  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

officials  against  anarchists  it  is  not  necessary  to  separate  them  from 
other  persons  in  so  far  as  the  ordinary  relations  of  life  are  con- 
cerned. 

Section  3  of  Congressman  Curtis'  bill  contains  a  proviso  which  is 
open  to  criticism  and  may  establish  a  censorship  of  the  press.  The 
provision  "that  the  section  shall  not  be  held  or  construed  to  prevent 
a  full  and  candid  discussion  of  events,"  etc.,  is  not  necessary  to  that 
section.  Xo  one  has  a  right  to  incite,  encourage,  promote  or  advise 
an  assault  with  intent  to  kill  the  president  or  any  one  else.  The 
man  who  does  so  should  be  held  equally  guilty  with  the  man  who 
commits  the  act.  A  clear  line  can  be  drawn  between  criticism,  no 
matter  whether  it  is  fair  or  unfair,  and  the  advocacy  of  violence  of 
any  kind,  in  any  form  or  under  any  circumstances. 

Section  5  also  provides  a  punishment  for  any  one  who  incites, 
encourages,  etc.,  the  overthrow  of  the  government  of  the  United 
States.  That  much  is  plain.  But  when  the  section  fixes  a  penalty 
for  the  diffusion  of  "the  doctrine  of  anarchy/'  it  becomes  obscure- 
The  word  anarchy  should  be  defined.  In  the  campaign  of  1896  the 
advocates  of  the  Chicago  platform  were,  by  some  partisan  republi- 
cans, denounced  as  anarchists.  The  law  ought  not  to  be  such  as 
to  give  the  dominant  party  an  excuse  for  prosecuting  as  criminals 
all  the  members  of  the  opposition  party.  If  anarchy  is  defined  as 
the  doctrine  that  the  government  ought  to  be  overthrown,  it  is 
covered  by  the  first  part  of  the  section.  If  it  is  anything  else,  or 
includes  anything  else,  it  ought  to  be  defined  so  that  the  lawmakers 
v.'ill  know  what  they  are  punishing. 

Section  5  provides  a  punishment  for  any  one  who  organizes  or 
belongs  to  a  society  or  club,  the  "object  of  which  is  to  overthrow, 
subvert  of  change  the  government  of  the  United  States."  The  words 
"overthrow"  and  "subvert"  are  plainer  than  the  word  "change." 
The  language  is  broad  enough  to  apply  to  the  advocates  of  imperial- 
ism, for  they  certainly  want  to  "change"  the  government  of  the 
United  States  from  a  government  based  upon  the  consent  of 
the  governed  to  a  government  based  upon  the  doctrine  of  brute 
force.  But  it  would  hardly  be  fair  to  indict  and  prosecute  all  im- 
perialists. The  word  "change"  might  also  be  construed  to  apply  to 
amendments  proposed  to  the  constitution.  Some  of  the  republicans 
say  that  the  constitution  will  have  to  be  amended  before  the  trusts 
can  be  destroyed.  While  we  have  no  assurance  that  an  amendment 
is  necessary,  still  it  would  be  unfortunate  to  have  a  law  which  would 
enable  republicans  to  withhold  an  amendment  (if  one  is  necessary) 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  333 

on  the  ground  that  it  would  be  a  criminal  change  in  our  government. 
There  is  a  popular  demand  for  the  election  of  United  States  sena- 
tors by  direct  vote  of  the  people.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  repub- 
licans will  not  give  any  of  the  senators  a  chance  to  oppose  the  change 
on  the  ground  that  they  would  incur  criminal  liability. 

Section  6  is  the  section  most  likely  to  be  abused.  It  is  directly 
aimed  at  the  public  press  and  it  cannot  be  enforced  without  a  strict 
censorship.  Who  is  to  decide  whether  an  "editorial,  article,  letter, 
circular,  picture  or  cartoon"  is  "intended  or  designed  to  expose  the 
president  or  vice-president  of  the  United  States,  any  member  of  the 
president's  cabinet,  the  chief  justice  or  any  justice  of  the  United 
States,  to  public  hatred,  scorn  or  contempt"  ?  It  would  be  difficult 
to  write  a  law  that  could  be  more  easily  used  by  a  political  party 
for  the  suppression  of  criticism.  The  provision  that  "nothing  herein 
shall  be  held  or  construed  to  prevent  candid,  full  and  free  presenta- 
tion of  public  events  and  public  measures,  nor  to  prevent  just  and 
fair  criticism  of  any  public  officer,"  would  be  no  protection,  because 
the  administration  would  construe  to  suit  itself  the  words  "candid," 
"just,"  and  "fair,"  and  upon  appeal  from  the  lower  court  the 
members  of  the  supreme  court  would  have  a  personal  interest  in 
sustaining  a  law  that  would  shield  them  from  criticism.  It  is 
hardly  possible  to  suppose  that  any  congress  ever  elected  in  this 
country  or  ever  to  be  elected  would  enact  a  law  containing  such  a 
restriction  upon  the  freedom  of  the  press  as  is  set  forth  in  section  6 
of  Mr.  Curtis'  bill,  but  it  is  well  for  friends  of  a  free  press  to  be  on 
their  guard. 

Let  the  law  punish  those  wEo  commit  murder,  who  attempt 
murder,  or  who  advise  murder;  let  it  restrain  violence  or  the 
counselling  of  violence;  let  it  discriminate  between  those  who 
would  reform  government  and  those  who  would  entirely  overthrow 
it,  but  let  it  not  attack  in  any  way,  directly  or  indirectly,  the 
freedom  of  speech  or  the  freedom  of  the  press.  ISTo  administration 
or  official  should  be  shielded  from  criticism.  If  criticism  is  just 
and  fair  it  ought  to  have  weight ;  if  it  is  unjust  and  unfair  it  will 
not  only  be  harmless  to  the  accused,  but,  in  the  long  run,  helpful 
to  him.  Even  if  unjust  and  unfair  criticism  were  Harmful,  the 
remedy  proposed  is  more  dangerous  than  the  disease.  We  can 
better  afford  to  subject  a  few  men  to  unmerited  criticism  than  to 
ripk  the  operation  of  a  censorship  which,  administered  by  partisans, 
would  suppress  honest  criticism  and  silence  complaint  by  the 
threat  of  a  criminal  process. 


334  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


THE    PRESIDENT'S    MESSAGE. 

President  Roosevelt's  first  message  to  congress  contains  much 
that  can  be  commended  by  members  of  all  parties.  After  paying 
a  high  compliment  to  Eis  predecessor  he  discusses  the  question 
of  anarchy  at  some  length,  and  proposes  certain  remedies  which 
THE  COMMONER  will  discuss  hereafter  when  those  remedies  are 
embodied  in  bills  presented  for  consideration  to  congress.  He 
pays  a  deserved  tribute  to  agriculture  and  emphasizes  the  im- 
portance of  the  preservation  of  fBe  forests.  His  recommendations 
on  the  subject  of  irrigation  are  especially  good.  He  seems  to  fully 
appreciate  the  magnitude  of  the  subject  and  the  limitations  which 
he  suggests  are  eminently  wise.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  congress 
will  heed  his  advice  and  in  all  legislation  bear  in  mind  that  "the 
only  right  to  water  which  .should  be  recognized  is  that  of  use/' 
and  that  "in  irrigation  this  right  should  attach  to  the  land  reclaimed 
and  be  inseparable  therefrom."  His  comparison  between  the  grant- 
ing of  "perpetual  water  rights  to  others  than  the  users"  and  the 
"giving  away  of  perpetual  franchises  to  the  public  utilities  of  cities" 
is  just  and  timely.  His  endorsement  of  the  Monroe  doctrine  is 
emphatic  and  comprehensive.  His  remarks  on  the  labor  question 
indicate  that  he  has  a  clearer  conception  of  the  laborers'  struggles 
and  difficulties  than  some  previous  presidents;  his  plans,  however, 
for  the  amelioration  of  the  condition  of  the  laboring  man  are  open 
to  discussion. 

The  democrats  will  dissent  from  his  high  tariff  remedy — the 
laborer  has  been  suffering  from  the  administration  of  that  remedy 
for  about  a  quarter  of  a  century.  There  is  virtue,  however,  in  the 
president's  advocacy  of  the  eight-hour  law,  and  of  regulations 
to  prevent  over-work  and  unsanitary  conditions.  He  failed  to 
condemn  government  bv  injunction  and  the  blacklist,  both  of  which 
have  caused  much  injustice  to  the  wage-earners. 

The  president's  recommendations  on  the  Chinese  question  are 
welcome;  they  will  insure  a  prompt  extension  of  the  Chinese 
exclusion  act.  While  many  of  the  republican  leaders  lean  to  the 
cheap  labor  .side  of  the  Chinese  question,  there  will  be  enough 
republicans  ready  to  act  with  fhe  democrats  to  make  futile  any 
attempt  to  open  our  doors  to  Chinese  emigration. 

The  president  has  stated  his  position  with  clearness  on  the  general 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  335 

subject  of  emigration  and  on  the  subject  of  civil  service,  and  he 
pledges  his  administration  to  make  appointments  in  the  army  and 
navy  depend  upon  merit  and  not  upon  personal,  political  or  social 
influence.  He  gives  considerable  attention  to  the  size  of  the  navy, 
and  urges  a  considerable  increase  in  the  naval  strength  of  the  nation. 

His  recommendations  upon  the  subject  of  the  merchant  marine 
and  on  the  subject  of  interstate  commerce  are  not  specific.  He 
wants  to  see  the  American  merchant  marine  "restored  to  the 
ocean,"  but  he  does  not  definitely  indorse  the  ship. subsidy  bill, 
which  gives  the  interpretation  which  republican  leaders  have  placed 
upon  the  republican  platform.  While  he  favors  an  enlargement 
of  the  scope  of  the  interstate  commerce  law  in  the  interest  of  the 
patrons  of  the  road,  his  language  raises  a  suspicion  that  he  is 
also  willing  to  concede  to  the  railroads  the  pooling  privileges  for 
which  they  have  contended  for  several  years. 

In  discussing  the  tariff  question  the  president  assumes  what  is 
not  true,  namely,  that  "there  is  general  acquiescence  in  our  present 
tariff  system  as  a  national  policy."  He  recommends  a  limited 
system  of  reciprocity,  but  wants  it  distinctly  understood  that  we 
must  not  concede  anything  that  is  really  of  any  value  to  us.  No 
one  can  read  that  portion  of  his  message  without  being  convinced 
that  the  reciprocity  idea  will  be  entirely  subordinate  to  the  interests 
and  demands  of  the  beneficiaries  of  a  high  tariff.  In  fact,  he  says 
as  much  when  he  declares  that  "reciprocity  must  be  treated  as  the 
handmaiden  of  protection,"  and,  therefore,  like  a  handmaiden, 
subject  to  discharge  on  short  notice. 

The  president  follows  the  republican  platform,  and  recommends 
the  creation  of  a  new  cabinet  position  to  be  filled  by  a  represen- 
tative of  the  commercial  and  industrial  interests.  It  will  be 
remembered  that  the  democratic  platform  advocated  the  creation 
of  a  department  of  labor,  with  a  cabinet  officer  in  charge.  The 
difference  between  a  representative  of  commerce  and  industry 
(already  represented  to  a  large  extent  by  the  secretary  of  the 
treasury,  who  is  closely  associated  with  the  bankers,  by  the  secretary 
of  state,  who  is  in  contact  with  our  consular  representatives,  and 
by  the  attorney  general,  who  has  for  years  been  intimate  with  the 
great  corporations)  and  one  speaking  for  and  representing  the  great 
wage-earning  classes  of  the  United  States  ought  to  be  apparent 
to  any  one. 

The  president's  recommendation  in  regard  to  an  Isthmian  canal 


336  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

also  follows  the  republican  platform,  and  leaves  out  all  mention 
of  the  route  to  be  followed.  There  is  a  widespread  opinion  that 
the  Panama  canal  project  has  been  used  by  the  railroads  to  prevent 
the  digging  of  the  Nicaragua  canal.  The  message  indicates  that  the 
president  appreciates  the  importance  of  the  canal,  and  this  gives 
us  some  room  to  hope  that  even  though  he  does  not  specifically 
indorse  the  Nicaragua  route,  he  will  not  permit  the  railroads  to 
further  delay  the  inauguration  of  this  great  enterprise. 

The  president  makes  no  reference  to  the  Boer  war.  Whether 
he  has  been  so  occupied  with  public  affairs  as  not  to  have  learned 
of  the  struggle  going  on  in  South  Africa ;  whether,  having  learned 
of  it,  he  considers  it  a  matter  of  trivial  importance;  whether  he 
sympathizes  with  the  Boers,  but  is  prevented  by  allegiance  to  his 
party  from  giving  expression  to  that  sympathy,  or  whether  his 
sympathies  are  with  England  in  her  efforts  to  extend  her  empire, 
all  these  are  left  to  conjecture. 

Scant  attention  is  given  to  the  money  question;  less  than  three 
hundred  words  are  used  to  set  forth  the  president's  position  on 
a  question  which  the  republican  papers  declared  to  be  paramount 
in  the  last  campaign.  Below  will  be  found  the  only  reference  to 
this  important  subject: 

The  act  of  March  14,  1900,  intended  unequivocally  to  estab- 
lish gold  as  the  standard  money  and  to  maintain  as  a  parity 
therewith  all  forms  of  money  medium  in  use  with  us,  has  been 
shown  to  be  timely  and  judicious.  The  price  of  our  govern- 
ment bonds  in  the  world's  market,  when  compared  with  the  price 
of  similar  obligations  issued  by  other  nations,  is  a  flattering 
tribute  to  our  public  credit.  This  condition  it  is  eminently  de- 
sirable to  maintain. 

In  many  respects  the  national  banking  law  furnishes  sufficient 
liberty  for  the  proper  exercise  of  the  banking  function,  but 
there  seems  to  be  need  of  better  safeguards  against  the  derang- 
ing influence  of  commercial  crises  and  financial  panics.  More- 
over, the  currency  of  the  country  should  be  made  responsive  to 
the  demands  of  our  domestic  trade  and  commerce. 


Does  this  mean  that  the  president  does  not  favor  the  proposed 
measure  making  the  silver  dollar  redeemable  in  gold,  or  does 
it  mean  that  he  is  going  to  adopt  the  plan  followed  by  the  gold 
standard  advocates  in  the  past  and  prevent  as  far  as  possible 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  337 

the  discussion  of  financial  measures?  He  does  not  mention  the 
branch  bank  or  the  asset  currency?  Does  it  mean  that  he  does 
not  favor  them,  or  that  he  prefers  to  have  them  sprung  upon 
congress  and  rushed  through  before  the  people  have  a  chance 
to  understand  them?  If  measures  are  necessary  to  protect  the 
people  "against  the  deranging  influence  of  commercial  crises  and 
financial  panics/'  why  not  present  such  measures  for  the  con- 
sideration of  the  people  ?  If  the  currency  should  be  made 
"responsive  to  the  demands  of  our  domestic  trade  and  commerce," 
why  not  outline  a  plan  so  that  the  public  generally  can  examine 
and  discuss  it?  Everybody  reads  the  president's  message,  but 
comparatively  few  people  know  anything  about  the  bills  presented. 
We  shall  see,  as  time  passes,  whether  the  currency  question  oc- 
cupies as  small  a  place  in  congressional  consideraton  as  it  has  in 
the  president's  message. 

The  president's  recommendations  on  the  postal  system  will  be 
discussed  at  another  time  when  they  can  be  considered  more  fully. 

The  two  subjects  specially  emphasized  in  the  president's  mes- 
sage are  the  trust  question  and  the  Philippine  situation.  On 
another  page  will  be  found  those  portions  of  the  message  which 
relate  to  these  two  subjects.  These  extracts  are  given  in  order 
that  the  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  may  judge  for  themselves 
whether  the  comments  to  be  made  are  justified.  A  perusal  of 
the  president's  utterances  on  the  trust  question  will  convince  any 
unprejudiced  reader  that  the  president  has  heard  from  the  trust 
magnates  since  he  made  his  Minneapolis  speech.  His  famous 
phrase  in  regard  to  the  shackling  of  cunning  is  reproduced,  but 
it  is  so  diluted  with  warnings,  cautions  and  fears,  as  to  be  scarcely 
recognizable.  It  is  evident  that  the  president  has  been  deeply  im- 
pressed by  the  doleful  prophecies  and  threatenings  of  the  monopo- 
lists. He  is  willing  to  admit  that  the  consolidation  of  capital 
which  is  going  on  is  a  process  which  has  aroused  much  antago- 
nism, but  he  feels  it  necessary  to  add  "a  great  part  of  which  is 
wholly  without  warrant."  He  borrows  the  phraseology  of  trust- 
defenders  when  he  asserts  that  "the  average  man,  the  wage-earner, 
the  farmer,  the  small  trader,  have  never  before  been  so  well  off 
as  in  this  country  and  at  this  time."  The  inference  is  natural — 
that  the  trust  evil  is  not  really  serious,  if  industrial  conditions 
are  as  favorable  as  the  president  asserts.  He  borrows  the  epithets 
of  the  trust  magnates  when  he  warns  the  country  against  "ig- 


338  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

norant  violence,"  against  "the  ignorant  or  reckless  agitator," 
against  "crude  and  ill-considered  legislation,"  and  against  "ap- 
peals, especially  to  hatred  and  fear."  It  is  doubtful  whether  any 
one  as  badly  scared  as  the  president  seems  to  be  is  in  a  proper 
frame  of  mind  to"  calmly  consider  an  effective  .anti-trust  law.  He 
gives  the  benefit  of  the  doubt  to  the  corporation,  and  nowhere 
expresses  as  much  solicitude  for  the  rights  of  the  masses  of  the 
people  as  he  does  for  the  interests  of  the  great  combinations  of 
capital  which  in  his  opinion  "will,  take  the  lead  in  the  strife  for 
commercial  supremacy  among  the  nations  of  the  world."  To 
embarrass  them  would  be,  in  his  opinion,  to  "cramp  and  fetter 
the  youthful  strength  of  the  nation."  The  only  remedy  suggested 
by  him  is  publicity,  and  in  discussing  the  subject  he  uses  illustra- 
tions which  convince  one  that  he  has  no  objections  to  private  monop- 
olies. He  puts  them  upon  the  same  footing  as  a  national  bank, 
and  simply  insists  that  they  shall  inform  the  public  as  to  their 
business  methods.  He  refers  to  the  evils  of  over-capitalization, 
but  does  not  suggest  any  specific  remedy  therefor.  We  are  to 
have  publicity  first,  and  investigation  afterward.  It  will  take 
some  time  to  get  the  idea  into  operation,  then  the  constitutional- 
ity of  the  law  will  be  attacked  and  prosecution  will  have  to  be 
suspended  a  few  years  until  the  case  is  reached  in  the  supreme 
court,  and  that  will  tide  the  party  over  another  presidential  elec- 
tion. If  the  president  is  in  earnest  in  his  desire  to  shackle  cun- 
ning, let  him  recommend  the  passage  of  a  bill  which  will  compel 
the  supreme  court  to  give  immediate  consideration  to  questions 
arising  under  laws  which,  like  an  anti-trust  law,  affect  the  entire 
people.  The  president  intimates  that  a  constitutional  amend- 
ment may  be  necessary  to  authorize  congress  to  take  comprehen- 
sive action  against  the  trusts.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  sug- 
gestion will  not  be  made  an  excuse  for  delay.  The  American 
people  are  losing  millions  of  dollars  every  week  because  of  the  ex- 
tortion of  trusts,  and  there  is  no  time  for  delay  in  dealing  with 
this  question. 

The  fatal  mistake  made  by  the  president  is  that'  he  fails  to 
recognize  that  a  private  monopoly  is  always,  and  under  every 
circumstance,  a  menace  to  the  public.  TKere  can  be  no  sufficient 
or  satisfactory  regulation  of  a  private  monopoly.  It  is  essentially 
and  eternally  wrong.  It  has  always  been  regarded  a?  an  outlaw 
against  society ;  it  has  never  been  defended  until  recently,  and  it  it 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  339 

lamentable  to  learn  from  the  president's  message  that  he  has  been 
constrained  by  the  trust  magnates  to  withhold  his  positive  and 
emphatic  condemnation  of  the  monopoly  principle.  There  is 
nothing  in  his  message  to  indicate  that  he  has  any  fear  of  the 
effect  of  a  private  monopoly.  When  he  declares  "that  combination 
and  concentration"  should  not  be  prohibited,  but  supervised, 
and  within  reasonable  limits  controlled,"  he  ignores  entirely 
the  vicious  principle  of  monopoly.  No  extension  of  foreign 
commerce,  no  development  of  domestic  industry  could  for  a  mo- 
ment justify  a  private  monopoly,  even  though  such  monopoly 
could  be  shown  to  be  advantageous  in  both  respects. 

On  the  subject  of  imperialism  the  president,,  without  attempting 
to  defend  the  principles  involved,  shields  himself  behind  the  force 
of  circumstances.  He  assumes  the  patronizing  air  of  the  advocates 
of  "destiny"  and  "duty"  and  insists  that  "our  earnest  effort  is  to 
help  these  people  upward  along  the  stony  and  difficult  path  that 
leads  to  self-government."  And  again  he  says:  "We  hope  to  do 
for  them  what  has  never  before  been  done  for  any  people  in  the 
tropics — to  make  them  fit  for  self-government  after  the  fashion  of 
the  really  free  nations."  He  thinks  any  attempt  to  give  them 
independence  now  "such  a  desertion  of  duty  on  our  part  as  would 
be  a  crime  against  humanity."  He  seems  to  regard  a  government 
based  upon  force  as  the  best  government  for  certain  classes,  and 
•free  government  as  only  possible  under  certain  circumstances,  for 
he  says  "it  is  no  light  task  for  a  nation  to  achieve  the  teinpera- 
mental  qualities  without  which  the  institutions  of  free  government 
are  but  empty  mockery,"  and  he  adds  that  "our  people  are  «now 
successfully  governing  themselves  because  for  more  than  a  thousand 
years  they  have  been  fitting  themselves,  sometimes  consciously, 
sometimes  unconsciously,  toward  this  end."  He  declares  that 
large  portions  of  the  Filipino  race  are  starting  "very  far  behind 
the  point  which  our  ancestors  had  reached  even  thirty  generations 
ago."  The  question  irresistibly  rises  in  one's  mind,  if  the  Filipinos 
are  a  thousand  years  behind  our  people  and  must  be  governed 
by  us  because  of  that  fact,  how  can  they  ever  catch  up  with  us  unless 
they  develop  more  rapidly  than  we  do  ?  Capacity  for  self-govern- 
ment is  a  relative  term,  that  is  to  say,  some  people  are  capable 
of  governing  themselves  better  than  others.  We  have  not  reached 
perfection  in  this  respect  and  the  Filipinos  certainly  have  some 
capacity.  .If  we  are  all  making  progress  it  will  evidently  be 


34O  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

necessary  for  the  Filipinos  to  improve  more  rapidly  than  we  do 
in  order  to  narrow  the  gap  between  us.  This  doctrine  is  a 
dangerous  one,  because  it  justifies  the  pretensions  of  an  impjerial 
government  wherever  people  can  be  found  rich  enough  to  invite 
exploitation  and  weak  enough  to  be  conquered. 

Conscious  that  "destiny"  and  "duty"  would  not  appeal  to  the 
commercial  element  of  the  republican  party,  the  president  proceeds 
to  recommend  legislation  that  will  give  American  citizens  a  chance 
to  garner  up  the  undeveloped  wealth  of  the  Philippine  islands. 
He  says :  "Of  course  no  business  man  will  go  into  the  Philippines 
unless  it  is  to  his  interest  to  do  so,  and  it  is  immensely  to  the 
interest  of  the  islands  that  he  should  go  in."  That  is  the  argument 
always  made  in  behalf  of  capital.  It  is  assumed  that  the  "inferior 
race"  is  longing  to  be  developed  by  foreign  speculators,  and  it 
is  admitted  that  the  speculator  will  not  go  unless  it  can  be  made 
profitable  to  him,  therefore,  laws  must  hold  out  inducements. 
Congress  must  take  possession  of  the  resources  of  the  Philippine 
islands  and  offer  them  as  a  reward  to  Americans  who  will  go  there 
and  develop  them.  The  American  people  will  furnish  an  army 
to  hold  the  Filipinos  in  subjection,  while  the  syndicates  and  cor- 
porations will  gather  all  the  wealth  in  sight.  This  is  the  Philip- 
pine question  in  a  nutshell :  Hold  the  islands ;  providence  gave  them 
to  us  and  we  must  make  all  the  money  out  of  them  we  can.  Show 
the  taxpayer  that  it  is  his  duty  to  bear  the  burden,  and  you  will 
have  no  difficulty  in  showing  the  exploiter  that  it  is  his  duty  to  reap 
the  reward. 

If  the  republicans  in  the  senate  and  house  attempt  to  carry 
out  the  president's  recommendations  on  the  Philippine  question, 
the  opposition  will  have  a  splendid  opportunity  to  manufacture 
material  for  the  next  campaign. 


MAEKHAM'S     POETRY. 

On  another  page  will  be  found  Markham's  tribute  to  Abraham 
Lincoln.  It  is  reported  not  only  because  of  the  subject,  'but  also 
because  of  the  poet's  treatment  of  the  subject.  Markham  to  a 
remarkable  degree  possesses  the  poetic  faculty  of  embalming  a 
beautiful  sentiment  in  beautiful  language,  so  that  his  words  linger 
in  the  memory.  The  poem  presented  to-day,  like  Gray's  Elegy, 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  341 

idealizes  the  homely  and  familiar  things  that  are  a  part  of  the 
existence  of  all.  He  ennobles  Lincoln  by  making  him  one  of  the 
common  people  and  by  exalting  the  real  elements  of  his  greatness. 
Where  can  we  find  such  a  collection  of  beautiful  and  appropriate 
similes  ? 

The  rectitude  and  patience  of  the  rocks; 
The  gladness  of  the  xwind  that  shakes  the  corn ; 
The  courage  of  the  bird  that  dares  the  sea; 
The  justice  of  the  rain  that  loves  all  leaves; 
The  pity  of  the  snow  that  hides  all  scars ; 
The  loving  kindness  of  the  wayside  well; 
The  tolerance  and  equity  of  light. 

Here  are  seven  lines,  each  setting  forth  a  virtue  that  would 
immortalize  a  man  and  all,  like  the  parables,  are  suggested  by  the 
every-day  things  of  life. 

It  is  a  rare  gift  to  be  able  to  see  the  things  around  us,  a  rarer 
gift  to  be  able  to  utilize  them  in  speech  or  prose,  and  still  a  rarer 
gift  to  be  able  to  clothe  them  in  the  resplendent  language  of  poesy. 
Markham  has  an  equipment  of  head  and  heart  that  fits  him  to 
portray  a  character  that  could  combine  rectitude,  patience,  gladness, 
courage,  equity,  tolerance,  pity  and  loving  kindness. 


THE  PRINCE  OF  PEACE. 

Christmas  is  at  hand,  and  its  coming  always  recalls  the  benedic- 
tion pronounced  in  the  presence  of  the  shepherds  who  kept  their 
flocks  by  night — 

"On  earth  peace,  good  will  toward  men/' 

Isaiah,  the  prophet,  in  speaking  of  the  coming  of  Christ,  said 
that  he  would  be  called  among  other  things  the  "Prince  of  Peace," 
and  immediately  after  this  prophecy  as  to  His  title  follows  this 
explanation  of  the  title:  "Of  the  increase  of  his  government  and 
peace  there  shall  be  no  end,  upon  the  throne  of  David  and  upon 
his  kingdom,  to  order  it,  and  to  establish  it  with  judgment  and 
with  justice  from  henceforth  even  forever." 

It  is  as  true  to-day  as  when  the  prophet  uttered  the  words,  that 
no  government  can  be  permanent  or  insure  peace  unless  it  is 


342  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

established  with  justice.  At  this  season  of  the  year,  held  sacred 
in  all  Christian  lands  and  observed  even  by  those  who  are  indifferent 
to  the  origin  of  Christmas  festivities,  it  is  well  for  us  to  ask 
ourselves  what  our  nation  as  a  nation  and  we  as  individuals  are 
doing  to  promote  peace  by  establishing  justice?  Until  within 
a  few  years  our  nation  has  been  known  as  a  peace-loving  nation; 
it  has  boasted  of  its  small  standing  army  and  it  has  had  no 
ambition  to  compete  with  foreign  nations  in  naval  expenditures. 
But  a  change  has  come  over  a  portion  of  our  people.  They 
advocate  wars  of  conquest  which  they  once  condemned;  they 
justify  military  expenditures  which  they  once  denounced,  and  they 
clamor  for  a  navy  as  big  as  the  biggest.  What  is  to  be  the  end? 
Was  the  hope  of  universal  peace  a  dream  ?  Is  right  to  be  measured 
by  might,  and  violence,  robed  in  hypocrisy,  to  be  substituted  for 
justice  ? 

A  Kansas  City  minister  indorses  the  assertion  of  Maxim,  the 
gunmaker,  who  declares  "often  at  the  bayonet's  point,  trade,  and 
even  Christianity  have  been  forced  upon  the  savages,  and  upon 
exclusive  and  warlike  peoples,  and  now  Christianity,  civilization 
and  militarism,  sisters  of  strange  relation,  hand  in  hand,  embrace 
the  world." 

Is  this  the  construction  which  the  modern  church  is  going  to  set 
upon  the  teachings  of  one  who  rebuked  the  doctrine  of  hate  and 
preached  the  gospel  of  love? 

Christmas  should  be  more  than  an  occasion  for  the  exchange 
of  presents.  It  should  be  a  season  for  conscientious  self-inspection 
by  citizens  individually  and  by  that  great  family  of  citizens,  the 
nation. 

"On  earth  peace,  good  will  toward  men." 


A  WORD  AS  TO  GIFTS. 

The  time  is  approaching  when  the  Christian  world  indulges 
in  that  most  delightful  of  luxuries — giving.  There  is  a  philosophy 
in  the  Biblical  doctrine  that  it  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to 
receive,  for  however  much  we  enjoy  the  gifts  that  come  to  us, 
we  enjoy  still  more  the  gifts  which  we  make,  if  they  are  made 
in  the  proper  spirit.  He  who  gives  becomes  a  creditor,  he  who 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  343 

receives  becomes  a  debtor,  and  it  is  always  better  to  lay  up  capital 
than  to  incur  obligations. 

There  are  two  rules  which  ought  to  be  observed:  First,  the 
gift  should  be  an  appropriate  one.  It  must  not  only  be  suited  to 
the  needs  of  the  recipient,  but  in  expense  it  ought  not  to  be  out  of 
proportion  to  the  means  of  the  donor.  It  mars  the  pleasure  of 
receiving  to  know  that  the  gift  was  a  more  expensive  one  than 
the  donor  could  well  afford  to  give.  Second,  the  gift  should  be 
useful,  and  if  possible  of  permanent  value.  The  toy  of  a  child 
gives  but  a  fleeting  pleasure — even  before  Christmas  day  closes 
it  is  often  battered  and  broken.  The  parent  is  always  glad  when 
the  child  reaches  an  age  at  which  it  will  appreciate  something 
more  lasting. 

Gifts  to  those  who  cannot  repay  except  in  gratitude  are  better 
than  gifts  bestowed  with  a  hope  of  return  with  interest.  On 
another  page  will  be  found  an  article  calling  attention  to  a  few 
books  which  have  been  advertised  in  THE  COMMONER.  The  editor 
has  advertised  these  books  because  he  believes  them  to  be  books 
of  merit,  and  he  has  felt  that  in  advertising  them  he  has  been 
doing  a  service  to  the  readers  as  well  as  conferring  a  favor  upon 
the  publisher. 

And  while  on  the  subject  of  gifts,  it  may  not  be  out  of  place 
to  suggest  that  gifts  should  not  be  bestowed  upon  those  who  are 
in  official  position,  for  even  when  they  do  not  suggest  an  ulterior 
motive  on  the  part  of  the  donor,  they  embarrass  the  recipient. 
A  faithful  public  servant  receives  a  two-fold  reward ;  his  pecuniary 
compensation  satisfies  any  legal  obligations  he  may  have  against 
the  community,  and  the  gratitude  and  appreciation  of  his  con- 
stituents fully  settle  his  account  with  them.  Jefferson  made  it  a 
rule,  while  he  was  president,  to  refuse  gifts  of  pecuniary  value, 
and  on  one  occasion  in  declining  to  accept  a  present  justified 
himself  as  follows: 

On  coming  into  public  office  I  laid  it  down  as  a  law  of  my 
conduct,  while  I  should  continue  in  it,  not  to  accept  any  present 
of  any  pecuniary  value.  A  pamphlet,  a  new  book,  or  an  article 
of  curiosity,  have  produced  no  hesitation,  because  below  suspicion, 
but  things  of  sensible  value,  however  innocently  offered  in  the 
first  examples,  may  grow  at  length  into  abuse  for  which  I  wish 
not  to  furnish  a  precedent.  The  kindness  of  the  motive?  which 
lead  to  this  manifestation  of  your  esteem,  sufficiently  assures  me 
that  you  will  approve  of  my  desire,  by  a  perseverance  in  the 


344  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

rule,  to  retain  that  consciousness  of  a  disinterested  administration 
of  public  trust,  which  is  essential  to  perfect  tranquillity  of  mind. 

On  this  question,  as  on  other  questions  relating  to  official  conduct, 
Jefferson  was  eminently  sound. 


THE  MEANING  OF  BIMETALLISM. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  asks  for  a  definition  of  bimetallism, 
and  specifically  inquires  whether  the  Kansas  City  platform  demands 
that  the  government  shall  maintain  the  parity  between  gold  and 
silver. 

Bimetallism  is  the  name  given  to  the  monetary  system  under 
which  gold  and  silver  are  used  as  full  legal  tender  money  at  a 
fixed  ratio,  and  admitted  to  unlimited  coinage.  The  Kansas 
City  platform  declared  in  favor  of  the  free  coinage  of  silver  as 
well  as  its  unlimited  coinage,  the  reason  being  that  free  coinage 
is  now  accorded  to  gold  and  was  formerly  accorded  to  both  metals. 
Under  the  bimetallic  system  the  two  metals  are  treated  exactly 
alike.  A  charge  sufficient  to  cover  the  cost  of  coinage  would, 
however,  be  entirely  consistent  with  the  bimetallic  system.  Mr. 
Carlisle  favored  such  a  change  in  1878,  when  he  denounced  the  gold 
standard,  but  such  a  charge  would  create  a  difference  between 
the  coin  and  the  bullion  value  of  the  coin.  If,  for  instance, 
the  government  charged  one  cent  for  converting  bullion  into 
coin,  the  coin  would  necessarily  lose  one  cent  by  melting  and  the 
bullion  value  would,  therefore,  remain  one  cent  below  the  coinage 
value. 

Bimetallism  does  not  depend  upon  any  particular  ratio.  We 
first  had  bimetallism  in  this  country  at  the  ratio  of  15  to  1,  and 
afterwards  at  the  ratio  of  16  to  1.  Other  nations  have  had  bi- 
metallism at  different  ratios,  as,  for  instance,  France,  at  the  ratio 
of  15  1-2  to  1.  The  ratio  of  16  to  1  was  specifically  named  in  the 
Chicago  platform  and  afterwards  in  the  Kansas  City  platform, 
first,  because  that  was  the  legal  ratio  existing  between  the  metals 
when  demonetization  took  place;  second,  because  it  is  the  ratio  at 
which  the  standard  silver  dollars  and  gold  coin  now  circulate; 
third,  because  the  advocates  of  bimetallism  believe  that  the  open- 
ing of  the  mints  at  that  ratio  would  create  a  demand  for  silver 


The  Commoner  Condensed  345 

which  would  make  an  ounce  of  silver,  whether  melted  or  coined, 
worth  $1.29  in  gold  the  world  over;  and,  fourth,  because,  if  a 
new  ration  were  desired,  it  would  be  impossible  to  select  it  in- 
telligently without  first  opening  the  mints  at  the  present  ratio 
in  order  to  measure  the  effect  that  free  coinage  would  have  upon 
the  price  of  silver  bullion.  When  the  Sherman  law  of  1890  was 
enacted  it  was  thought  that  it  would  utilize  all  the  silver  available 
for  coinage,  and  under  the  stimulus  of  this  law-created  demand 
silver  rose  to  $1.21  an  ounce,  not  only  here,  but  all  over  the  world. 

It  was  necessary  to  name  a  specific  ratio  because  advocates  of 
the  gold  standard  had  for  several  years  been  securing  office  on 
indefinite  or  ambiguous  platforms,  and  then,  when  in  office,  had 
been  betraying  their  constituents.  It  became  necessary  to  make 
the  platform  specific  in  order  to  protect  the  voters  from  fraud  and 
deception.  That  necessity  is  still  present;  a  general  demand  for 
bimetallism  would  amount  to  an  abandonment  of  bimetallism  be- 
cause gold  democrats  would  secure  nominations  on  such  a  platform, 
and  then,  if  elected,  would,  as  they1  have  in  the  past,  act  with 
the  republicans  to  maintain  the  gold  standard. 

As  to  the  second  question,  namely,  whether  concurrent  circula- 
tion of  the  two  metals  is  essential  to  a  bimetallic  system?  To 
answer  this  in  the  negative  without  further  explanation  might 
lead  to  misunderstanding.  The  concurrent  circulation  of  the  two 
metals,  while  desirable,  is  not  absolutely  necessary  to  the  main- 
tenance of  the  bimetallic  system,  but  the  bimetallists  believe  that 
the  parity  would  be  maintained  in  this  country  at  the  ratio  of  16 
to  1.  We  had  bimetallism  from  1792  to  1834,  during  nearly  all 
of  which  time  gold  was  at  a  premium  because  our  mint  ratio,  com- 
pared with  the  mint  ratio  of  France  and  some  other  countries, 
undervalued  gold.  When  in  1834  the  ratio  was  changed  from  15 
to  1  to  16  to  1,  silver  was  then  undervalued,  as  compared  with 
the  ratio  of  France  and  some  other  countries,  and,  therefore,  silver 
went  to  a  premium  and  remained  at  a  premium  until  it  was  de- 
monetized. During  both  these  periods  we  had  bimetallism,  and 
it  was  possible  to  coin  gold  or  silver  without  limit  as  to  amount  into 
full  legal  tender  money  at  a  fixed  ratio  of  16  to  1,  and  this  be- 
lief is  founded  upon  two  arguments:  first,  that  the  monetary  use 
of  silver  would  absorb  all  the  silver  available  for  coinage  at  our 
mints,  thus  raising  the  bullion  price  of  silver  to  $1.29  an  ounce; 
and,  second,  that  no  gold  nation  is  now  coining  gold  and  silver 


346  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

at  a  ratio  more  favorable  to  gold  than  ours.  If  any  large  nation 
opened  its  mints  to  the  free  and  unlimited  coinage  of  gold  and 
silver  at  15  1-2  to  1,  it  would  get  some  of  our  silver  and  silver 
would  go  to  a  premium.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  any  large  nation 
opened  its  mints  to  the  free  and  unlimited  coinage  of  both  metals 
at  the  rate  of  16  1-2  to  1,  or  some  higher  ratio,  it  would  be  apt 
to  get  some  of  our  gold,  and  gold  would  go  to  a  premium.  But, 
under  existing  or  probable  conditions,  there  would  be  no  difficulty 
in  maintaining  the  parity  at  the  ratio  of  16  to  1.  If  there  was 
any  force  in  the  argument  made  for  thirty  years  that  the  parity 
was  more  difficult  to  maintain  because  the  production  of  silver 
was  increasing  more  rapidly  than  the  production  of  gold,  the  parity 
ought  to  be  more  easily  maintained  now,  since  the  production  of 
gold  is  increasing  more  rapidly  than  the  production  of  silver. 

Two  ways  of  maintaining  the  parity  have  been  suggested.  One 
is  to  put  silver  upon  an  equal  footing  with  gold,  make  it  a  legal 
tender  equal  with  gold,  and  enable  it  to  do  all  that  gold  can  do — 
this  is  the  bimetallic  plan.  The  other  plan  is  to  make  the  silver 
dollar  redeemable  in  gold,  but  this  plan  converts  silver  into  a 
credit  money  and  greatly  impairs  its  usefulness.  It  really  makes 
gold  the  standard  and  silver  subsidiary  to  it.  When  one  metal 
goes  to  a  premium  it  does  not  all  leave  the  country.  It  circulates 
at  its  premium  value  and  still  contributes  to  the  volume  of  money 
just  as  silver  did  from  1834  to  1861  and  just  as  both  gold  and 
silver  did  from  1861  to  1879.  If  under  bimetallism  one  metal 
goes  to  a  premium  the  people  can  do  whichever  they  prefer,  viz., 
they  can  either  change  the  ratio  or  bear  with  the  inconvenience 
of  the  premium. 

Some  bimetallists  whose  devotion  to  the  cause  cannot  be  doubted 
have  expressed  themselves  in  favor  of  a  change  in  the  ratio,  provided 
it  is  shown  by  experience  that  the  parity  cannot  be  maintained 
at  the  ratio  of  16  to  1.  Others  have  refused  to  discuss  this  propo- 
sition; first,  because  a  discussion  of  other  ratios  might  be  con- 
strued (not  fairly,  but  unfairly)  as  an  admission  that  the  parity 
could  not  be  maintained  at  16  to  1;  and,  second,  because  the  power 
to  legislate  remains  with  the  people,  and  they  are  always  at  liberty 
to  make  any  changes  which  to  them  may  seem  best.  Under  our 
form  of  government  no  unchangeable  system  can  be  established. 
If  the  people  try  the  gold  standard  and  do  not  like  it,  they  can 
change  it ;  if  they  thy  the  double  standard  and  do  not  like  it,  they 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  347 

can  change  it;  if  they  try  one  ratio  and  do  not  like  it,  they  can 
try  another. 

In  answer  to  those  who  express  the  fear  that  the  parity  cannot 
be  maintained,  but  give  no  reason  for  their  skepticism,  the  advo- 
cates of  bimetallism  express  the  belief  that  it  can  be  maintained 
and  give  their  reasons  for  it.  Neither  side  can  prove  its  position 
by  a  mathematical  demonstration,  but  experience  and  argument 
support  the  bimetallists. 


QUESTIONS  FOR  DEBATE. 

THE  COMMONER  in  a  recent  issue  suggested  the  propriety  of 
organizing  debating  societies  throughout  the  country  for  the  dis- 
cussion of  public  questions.  Since  the  editorial  appeared  a  number 
of  letters  have  been  received  asking  for  information  and  inquiring 
about  questions  for  debate.  Such  a  club  is  not  difficult  to  organize. 
All  that  is  necessary  is  a  brief  constitution  containing  one  ar- 
ticle giving  the  name  of  the  club,  another  stating  the  purpose 
and  terms  of  membership,  and  a  third  naming  the  officers  and  de- 
scribing their  duties.  The  by-laws  should  fix  the  hour  and  place 
of  meeting  and  dues,  if  dues  are  necessary. 

In  country  precincts  meetings  can  be  held  at  the  school  house 
or  at  private  houses.  Often  literary  clubs  meet  at  the  houses  of 
the  members,  each  one  taking  his  turn,  but  sometimes  when  one 
house  is  commodious  and  centrally  located  it  is  used  as  the  regular 
meeting  place.  Where  the  club  meets  at  a  private  house  it  is  well 
for  the  by-laws  to  provide  that  no  refreshments  shall  be  served, 
because  all  members  may  not  be  in  a  position  to  serve  refresh- 
ments, and  as  no  one  cares  to  do  less  than  his  neighbor,  some 
embarrassment  might  be  caused  if  refreshments  were  served  at  one 
place  and  not  another. 

As  to  questions  for  debate,  the  following  are  submitted  by  way 
of  suggestion  : 

I.  Resolved,    That  the  United  States  should  permanently  hold 
the  Philippine  Islands  under  a  colonial  form  of  government. 

II.  Resolved,   That  the  United  States  should  permanently  hold 
the  Philippine  Islands  as  an  integral  part  of  this  country,  extend- 
ing to  the   inhabitants  the  protection   of   our  constitution   and 
giving  them  the  promise  of  ultimate  citizenship  and  full  participa- 
tion in  elections,  national  and  local. 


348  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

These  two  questions  present  the  Philippine  issue  and  give  the" 
advocates  of  imperialism  a  chance  to  present  a  definite  plan  for 
dealing  with  the  Filipinos. 

III.  Eesolved,    That  private  monopolies  are  beneficial  to  the 
public  and  should  be  permitted  to  exist,  but  should  be  placed 
under  government  supervision. 

IV.  Eesolved,    That  a  private  monopoly  is  indefensible  and 
intolerable. 

These  questions  present  the  trust  issue  in  such  form  that  the 
principles  involved  may  be  discussed. 

V.  Kesolved,  That  this  nation  should  maintain  the  gold  stand- 
ard as  long  as  the  other  leading  nations  do  so. 

VI.  Eesolved,  That  this  nation  should  maintain  the  gold  stand- 
ard, regardless  of  what  other  nations  may  do. 

VII.  Eesolved,  That  bimetallism,  that  is  the  use  of  gold  and 
silver  as  standard  money  and  the  coinage  of  gold  and  silver  into 
standard  money  on  equal  terms,  would  be  better  for  this  country 
than  the  single  gold  standard. 

VIII.  Eesolved,   That,   assuming  bimetallism  to  be   desirable, 
silver  should  be  coined  without  charge  for  mintage  so  long  as 
gold  is  coined  without  charge  for  mintage. 

IX.  Eesolved,  That,  assuming  bimetallism  to  be  desirable,  the 
mints  should  be  opened  to  the  coinage  of  silver  at  the  present 
legal  ratio  of  16  to  1. 

X.  Eesolved,  That  paper  money,  issued  by  the  government,  is 
better  for  the  people  than  paper  money  issued  by  national  banks. 

XL  Eesolved,  That  the  national  banking  law  should  be  so 
changed  as  to  permit  banks  to  issue  currency  based  on  their  assets 
rather  than  upon  government  bonds. 

XII.  Eesolved,  That  the  large  national  banks  should  be  per- 
mitted to  establish  branches  throughout  the  country. 

These  questions  present  the  phases  of  the  money  question 
which  are  most  discussed  at  present.  Those  who  advocate  the 
issue  of  paper  money  by  the  government  are  divided  into  two 
classes :  those  who  believe  that  the  greenback  should  be  redeemable 
in  gold  or  silver — the  government  exercising  the  option  as  to 
the  metal  to  be  used — and  those  who  believe  that  the  greenback 
should  not  be  redeemable  in  the  sense  that  it  is  a  legal  tender  for 
taxes,  debts,  etc.  This  question  assumes  that  government  money 
is  better  than  bank  money  and  raises  the  issue  of  redeemability 
only. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  349 

XIII.  Resolved,,  That  the  Chinese  exclusion  act  should  be  ex- 
tended and  applied  to  similar  classes  of  other  oriental  nations. 

XIV.  Resolved,  That  the  Nicaragua  canal  should  be  built,  owned 
and  protected  by  the  United  States. 

XV.  Resolved,  That  an  isthmian  canal  should  be  built,  owned 
and  protected  by  the  United  States. 

These  two  questions  present  the  isthmian  canal  question  in 
the  two  forms  that  are  most  discussed. 

XVI.  Resolved,  That  United  States  senators  should  be  elected 
by  direct  vote  of  the  people. 

XVII.  Resolved,  That  the  principle  of  the  initiative  and  refer- 
endum is  sound  and  should  be  applied  in  state  and  federal  govern- 
ment as  far  as  is  practicable. 

XVIII.  Resolved,  That  provision  should  be  made  for  voluntary 
arbitration  between  corporations  and  t&eir  employes. 

XIX.  Resolved,  That  there  should  be  compulsory  arbitration 
between  corporations  and  their  employes. 

XX.  Resolved,   That   government  by  injunction  is   a  menace 
to  our  government  and  that  as  a  means  to  its  correction  the  law 
should  provide  that   a   person  charged  with  contempt  of  court 
should  be  given  a  trial  by  jury  when  the  contempt  is  committed 
outside  of  the  court  room. 

The  above  questions  do  not  present  all  the  issues  between  the 
two  leading  parties,  but  they  present  the  main  ones  and  are 
sufficient  to  furnish  debating  societies  with  material  for  the  win- 
ter's work.  They  are  stated  in  such  a  way  as  to  present  the  issue 
clearly  so  that  each  side  will  know  what  it  is  advocating.  In 
addition  to  these  questions  there  are  questions  presenting  the  gov- 
ernment ownership  of  railroads,  and  questions  presenting  the 
municipal  ownership  of  lighting  plants,  water  plants  and  street 
car  lines.  (These  can  be  discussed  singly  or  grouped  together.) 
The  question  between  socialism  and  individualism  can  be  pre- 
sented as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  the  government  should  own  and  operate  ill  the 
means  of  production  and  distribution. 

While  the  editor  of  THE  COMMONER  has  not  attempted  to  men- 
tion all  the  questions  discussed  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  in  vari- 
ous parts  of  the  country,  he  has  said  enough  to  show  how  wide  .is 
the  field  of  inquiry  and  how  imperative  the  necessity  for  investi- 
gation if  one  would  act  intelligently  upon  public  questions. 


350  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


XVIL 

TOO  GEEAT  AN  ADVANTAGE. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  complains  that  national  banks  en- 
joy too  great  a  privilege  in  being  permitted  to  loan  out  five  or  ten 
times  their  capital  stock.  He  shows  the  disadvantages  of  the  ordi- 
nary individual  as  compared  with  the  bank.  While,  as  he  points 
out,  the  bank  has  a  great  advantage  in  the  earning  of  an  income 
and  in  the  accumulation  of  wealth,  there  is  another  objection,  and 
an  even  more  serious  one,  to  the  manner  in  which  banking  is 
done  at  present.  When  a  bank  with  a  capital  of  one  million  is 
allowed  to  receive  and  loan  out  deposits  amounting  to  ten  millions, 
the  depositor  does  not  have  a  sufficient  margin  for  security.  A 
little  shrinkage  in  values  wipes  out  the  capital  stock  and  leaves 
the  depositor  no  security  save  the  notes  taken  by  the  bank.  In 
good  times  such  a  bank  makes  enormous  profits  and  in  bad  times 
its  failure  brings  disaster  to  depositors  and  is  likely  to  cause  a  run 
on  banks  more  wisely  conducted.  There  ought  to  be  a  fixed  relation 
established  by  law  between  capital  and  deposits,  so  that  there 
would  always  be  a  safe  margin  for  the  protection  of  the  depositors 
of  the  community.  But  how  can  banks  be  made  safe  as  long  as  the 
financiers  control  eongress? 

ADMIRAL  SCHLEY. 

If  Admiral  Schley  needed  a  vindication  he  obtained  it  in  the 
splendid  tribute  paid  him  by  Admiral  Dewey  in  the  latter's  min- 
ority report.  In  truth  Admiral  Schley  did  not  need  a  vindication. 
In  the  judgment  of  the  American  people  he  is  one  of  this  country's 
great  naval  heroes,  and  this  is  shown  to  be  true  by  the  very  general 
condemnation  which  the  court  of  inquiry's  report  has  met  with 
on  the  part  of  the  public. 

Admiral  Schley's  detractors  appear  to  be  very  anxious  to  drop 
the  affair.  Some  of  them  declare  that  there  is  no  need  for  further 
investigation.  THE  COMMONER  is  inclined  to  believe  that  further 
investigation  is  not  needed.  It  is  true,  however,  that  something 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  351 

remains  to  be  done  in  order  that  justice  should  be  accorded  the 
hero  of  Santiago  bay. 

Instead  of  the  congressional  investigation  into  facts  that  are 
already  established  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  American  people, 
Schley  should  be  restored  to  active  service,  and  he  should  be  ap- 
pointed vice  admiral  to  hold  the  place  during  the  remainder  of 
his  life.  Anything  less  would  be  inadequate. 

If  a  congressional  investigation  is  to  be  had  it  should  not  be 
an  investigation  of  a  hero ;  the  naval  officers  and  employes  who  are 
responsible  for  the  assaults  upon  Schley  should  be  investigated  for 
the  benefit  of  the  service  in  the  future. 


NEW  YEAE'S  DAY  RESOLUTIONS. 

While  a  good  resolution  can  be  made  at  any  season,  the  begin- 
ning of  the  New  Year  seems  an  appropriate  time  for  "turning 
over  a  new  leaf."  It  ought  not  to  be  difficult  to  give  up  a  bad  habit 
>since  an  intelligent  self-interest  prompts  one  to  do  that  which 
will  be  of  benefit  to  himself,  and  yet  some  special  stimulus  is 
often  necessary. 

THE  COMMONER  is  published  primarily  for  the  support  and 
advancement  of  democratic  principles.  The  editor  desires  to 
aid  in  securing  those  reforms  which  he  believes  would  be  helpful 
to  the  people  generally,  but  he  recognizes  that  under  the  most  just 
government  and  the  most  perfect  laws  individual  happiness  would 
largely  depend  upon  individual  merit.  Even  when  the  government 
does  all  that  it  can  it  cannot  make  a  wicked  man  happy  or  pro- 
tect a  thoughtless  man  from  the  trouble  which  his  conduct  in- 
vites. 

As  our  lives  are  built  upon  ideals,  the  greatest  service  which 
can  be  rendered  to  one  is  to  raise  his  ideals  and  give  him  a  broader 
view  of  life.  A  parent  does  this  by  example  and  by  daily  precept ; 
the  teacher  in  the  pulpit  and  in  the  school  room  does  the  same  and 
the  editor  is  not  without  responsibility.  Every  one,  in  fact,  has 
some  influence  on  some  one  and  that  influence  ought  to  be  exerted 
for  good. 

What  is  the  value  of  an  ideal  ?  Sometimes  it  measures  the  differ- 
ence between  success  and  failure — between  happiness  and  despair. 

Instead  of  recommending  that  each  reader  of  THE  COMMONER 


352  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

give  up  that  habit  which  his  own  conscience  most  condemns,  the 
editor  suggests  that  the  readers  spend  a  part  of  New  Year's  Day 
considering  this  proposition,  namely,  that  every  one  owes  it  to 
himself,  to  his  kindred  and  to  his  country,  (not  to  speak  of  the 
obligation  to  his  creator),,  to  so  develop  and  use  his  body,  head  and 
heart,  as  to  contribute  the  most  possible  to  the  welfare  and  happi- 
ness of  mankind.  If  this  proposition  is  sound,  then  it  follows 
that  each  individual  is  in  duty  bound  to  do  whatever  increases, 
and  to  abstain  from  whatever  decreases,  his  usefulness. 

If,  during  1902,  the  readers  of  THE  COMMONER  will  measure  life 
by  this  rule  there  will  be  less  to  regret  at  the  end  of  the  year,  no 
matter  what  the  administration  may  do. 

Improvement  becomes  an  easier  task  when  one's  conduct  is  regu- 
lated by  a  high  and  determined  purpose.  There  is  inspiration 
in  the  philosophy  of  Socrates  and  his  words  are  commended  to 
those  who  are  earnest  in  their  desire  for  self-improvement.  When 
the  illustrious  Greek  was  about  to  be  condemned  to  death,  and  his 
friends  urged  him  to  spend  more  time  preparing  his  defense,  he 
replied  that  he  had  passed  his  whole  life  in  preparing  his  defense, 
for  he  had  gone  through  life  "doing  nothing  but  considering  what 
was  just  and  what  unjust,  doing  what  was  just  and  abstaining 
from  what  was  unjust,"  and  he  rightly  considered  this  the  best 
preparation  for  his  defense  against  any  charge  that  could  be  pre- 
ferred. 


THE  PHILIPPINE  TARIFF. 

On  another  page  will  be  found  an  abstract  of  the  Philippine 
tariff  measure  passed  by  the  House  of  Eepresentatives,  practically 
by  a  party  vote.  It  is  one  of  the  most  shameless  pieces  of  legis- 
lation ever  proposed  by  any  party  and  it  ought  to  seal  the  political 
fate  of  any  man  who  supports  it.  England,  in  her  oppression  of 
the  American  colonies,  was  never  guilty  of  anything  more  tyran- 
nical, and  even  Spain,  whose  despotism  aroused  our  country  to 
armed  protest  in  behalf  of  Cuba — even  Spain  lacked  the  refined 
cruelty  which  republican  leaders  practice  with  seeming  enjoy- 
ment. While  the  West  Indies  were  under  the  rule  of  the  Castilian 
they  enjoyed  free  trade  with  the/another  country  and  had  repre- 
sentation in  the  imperial  parliament,  but  the  Filipinos,  after  co- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  353 

operating  with  us  against  Spain,  were  bought  like  chattels  from  a 
vanquished  foe  and  placed  under  the  control  of  high-priced  carpet- 
bag officials.  Now  they  are  to  be  shut  out  from  commercial  inter- 
course with  the  United  States  by  a  high  tariff  wall  constructed  to 
enable  a  few  American  manufacturers  to  grow  rich  at  the  expense  of 
the  rest  of  the  people  and  denied  representation  in  the  legislature 
which  taxes  them.  The  democrats  in  the  house  of  representatives 
have  greatly  strengthened  their  party  by  their  vigorous  opposition 
to  the  measure.  The  short  time  given  for  debate  in  the  house 
makes  it  imperative  that  the  democrats  of  the  senate  shall  present 
to  the  public  through  the  Congressional  Record  the  facts  relative 
to  colonialism  as  thus  far  developed. 


SECRETARY  GAGE'S  REPORT. 

In  his  annual  report  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  Gage  has  recom- 
mended a  shipping  subsidy ;  the  repeal  of  minor  war  taxes ;  a  cen- 
tral bank;  the  creation  of  a  national  clearing  house  of  national 
banks;  the  enlargement  of  the  limit  of  subsidiary  silver  coinage 
to  $120,000,000,  and  the  asset  currency  plan. 

Concerning  the  latter  proposition,  Secretary  Gage's  recommen- 
dation embodies  practically  the  provisions  of  the  Overstreet  bill 
or  the  McCleary  bill.  The  secretary  of  the  treasury  appears  to  be 
fully  convinced  as  to  the  propriety  of  this  plan.  He  thinks  that  at 
least  two  beneficial  results  would  follow.  He  thinks  that 
$60,000,000  in  United  States  bonds,  now  in  security,  would  be 
gradually  released  for  sale  in  the  general  market.  The  impound- 
ing of  the  greenbacks  as  security  for  the  bank  notes  would,  he 
thinks,  relieve  the  government  from  all  the  burdens  now  incident 
to  their  redemption  to  an  extent  of  $200,000,000.  For  the  balance 
of  $146,000,000  in  legal  tender  notes  which  would  then  be  out- 
standing, the  $150,000,000  in  gold  now  held  as  a  special  redemp- 
tion fund  would  soon  be  excessive.  If  this  were  reduced  to  $146,- 
000,000  the  greenbacks  would  become  virtually  what  Secretary 
Gage  thinks  they  ought  to  be  in  reality,  gold  certificates.  In  real- 
ity, Secretary  Gage's  plan  contemplates  the  actual  retirement  of 
the  greenbacks  and  the  substitution  of  a  national  banking  currency 
for  the  government  currency,  giving  to  the  national  banks,  in  ad- 
dition to  the  enormous  power  they  already  possess,  the  privilege 


354  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  doing  an  immense  amount  of  business  on  wind.  This  is  "sound 
finance" ;  this  would  be  the  realization  of  "a  wise  and  business-like 
financial  policy/'  according  to  the  republican  theory.  This  repre- 
sents, in  the  most  presentable  form,  the  purpose  of  republican 
financiers.  The  American  people  have  not  yet  begun  to  realize 
the  responsibilities  they  were  assuming  when  they  elected  and  re- 
elected  the  republican  party  to  power ;  but  day  by  day  the  plans  of 
republican  leaders  are  being  unfolded;  and  "little  by  little,  but 
steadily,  as  man's  march  to  the  grave,"  the  republican  leaders  are 
transforming  liberty  into  license,  and  no  one  need  be  surprised  if 
"asset  currency"  and  branch  banks,  in  a  short  time,  become  reali- 
ties. 


THE  EXPOET  TAX  DECISION. 

The  federal  constitution  provides:  "Xo  tax  or  duty  shall  be 
levied  on  articles  exported  from  any  state."  Congress  levied  a  duty 
on  goods  going  from  the  United  States  to  Porto  Eico.  The 
supreme  court  has  held  this  duty  to  be  not  in  violation  of  the  con- 
stitution. 

It  is  fair  to  say  that  the  court  expressly  disavows  any  inclination 
to  sanction  an  export  tax,  and  yet  it  is  not  unfair  to  say  that  this 
disavowal  was  necessary  in  order  for  the  judges  to  seriously  main- 
tain the  position  they  assumed. 

If  a  tax  levied  upon  goods  going  from  the  United  States  is  not 
an  export  tax,  then  it  is  difficult  to  understand  what  would  be  an 
export  tax.  The  court,  however,  speaking  through  Justice  Brown, 
reasons  that  "if  a  tax  levied  by  congress  on  articles  exported  from 
the  United  States  to  the  insular  possessions  is  an  export  tax,  then 
congress  can  neither  levy  such  tax  nor  delegate  authority  to  do  so 
to  an  insular  legislature  like  that  of  Porto  Eico,  and  congress 
cannot  delegate  a  power  which  it  does  not  itself  possess." 

That  is  quite  clear  and  the  students  of  government  in  this 
country  have,  for  many  years,  been  impressed  with  the  idea  that 
congress  does  not  possess  the  power  to  levy  upon  any  territory  or 
people,  subject  to  United  States  jurisdiction,  a  tax  that  does  not 
also  apply  to  all  territory  and  all  people  under  that  jurisdiction. 
Students  of  government  in  this  country  have  long  been  impressed 
with  the  idea  that  congress  cannot  delegate  even  to  that  remarkable 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  355 

institution  known  as  "insular  legislature"  a  power  which  congress 
does  not  itself  possess. 

The  court,  however,  insists  that  "the  maintenance  of  a  separate 
economic  system  in  an  insular  country  would  become  practically 
impossible  so  far  as  its  commercial  relations  with  the  United  States 
were  concerned,"  if  these  strange  doctrines  did  not  prevail.  And 
the  court  holds  that  inasmuch  as  Porto  Eico  is  not  foreign  terri- 
tory, goods  shipped  to  Porto  Rico  are  not  exports. 

This  same  reasoning  would  sustain  the  claim  that  a  tax  levied 
on  goods  shipped  from  one  state  to  another  was  not  an  export  tax 
because  the  state  or  territory  to  which  the  goods  were  billed  was 
not  foreign  territory. 

Chief  Justice  Fuller  and  Justices  Harlan,  Brewer  and  Peckham 
hold  that  the  duty  imposed  is  export  in  its  character,  and  that  the 
fact  that  it  was  levied  for  the  benefit  of  Porto  Rico  does  not  alter 
the  situation.  It  is  difficult  to  describe  judicial  decisions,  to  sus- 
tain which  the  fundamental  law  must  be  twisted  and  distorted  or 
abandoned  altogether.  It  is  difficult  to  understand  how  any  one 
could  consider  a  tax  levied  on  goods  exported  from  the  United 
States  as  anything  other  than  an  export  tax;  and  it  is  safe  to. 
say  that  in  the  fullness  of  time,  when  the  new  and  strange  doctrine 
is  abandoned,  the  position  taken  by  the  chief  justice  and  Justices 
Harlan,  Peckham  and  Brewer  will  be  vindicated  by  popular 
judgment  as  completely  as  they  must  now  be  vindicated  in  the  mind 
of  every  student  of  government. 


BRANCH  BANKS. 

In  his  annual  report  Secretary  Gage  recommends  a  great  central 
bank.  He  says  that  the  existing  system  does  not  afford  "the  highest 
assurance  of  protection"  and  does  not  establish  "a  bond  of  co- 
hesion, the  power  of  co-operative  action,  the  ability  to  co-ordinate 
for  the  general  good  or  for  mutual  defense,"  such  as  would  be  pro- 
vided by  a  central  institution  with  multiplied ,  branches.  Those 
who  have  carefully  observed  the  part  which  the  banking  insti- 
tutions have  played  in  the  politics  of  the  country  will  obtain  a 
hint  of  the  enormous  power  a  central  bank,  with  "multiplied 
branches"  would  wield  when  they  observe  that  the  promoters 
of  the  proposed  system  believe  that  between  the  banks  as  organized 


356  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

to-day  there  is  no  "bond  of  cohesion"  and  no  "power  of  co-operative 
action."  Mr.  Gage  says  that  the  proposition  for  a  large  central  bank 
with  broad  powers  for  establishment  of  branches  "offends  the  com- 
mon instincts  of  our  people,"  and  "may  be  looked  upon  at  present 
as  impossible  of  realization."  We  may  accept  this  language,  then, 
while  giving  no  encouragement  for  the  immediate  present,  as 
holding  out  the  hope  that  after  a  while,  when  the  people  shall 
have  become  quite  accustomed  to  republican  impositions  of  all 
kinds,  the  "common  instincts  of  our  people"  may  be  violated  with 
impunity  and  even  a  central  bank  may  be  established. 

If  this  proposition  does  now  offend  the  "common  instincts  of 
our  people"  what  manner  of  official  is  this  who  holds  out  even 
the  smallest  hope  that  the  offense  may  yet  be  given? 

The  "common  instincts  of  our  people"  have  provided  the  safe- 
guard of  our  liberty  and  have  insured  the  perpetuation  of  free 
government.  If  Mr.  Gage  shall  finally  succeed  in  establishing 
this  "offense"  to  the  "common  instincts  of  our  people,"  he  must 
either  effect  a  complete  change  in  those  "instincts"  or  he  must 
place  the  people  in  such  a  state  of  servitude  that  they  will  not 
be  able  to  give  expression  to  their  "common  instincts." 

The  central  bank  is  not  the  only  republican  proposition  that 
offends  the  "common  instincts  of  our  people,"  and  yet  in  many 
other  instances  the  republican  party  has  ignored  these  "instincts" 
and  established  un-American  policies  without  the  slightest  regard 
for  public  criticism.  May  it  not  be  possible  that  Mr.  Gage  has 
some  warrant  in  believing  that  the  time  will  come  when  even 
on  the  question  of  a  great  central  bank,  the  "common  instincts 
of  our  people"  may  be  defied  with  impunity  by  the  republican 
party  ? 


AS  OTHERS  SEE  US. 

Those  who  are  inclined  toward  imperialism  ought  to  find  a 
warning  in  the  views  now  being  expressed  by  the  eminent  men 
of  other  lands.  An  American  student  at  Heidelberg,  Germany, 
sends  to  THE  COMMONER  the  following  extract  from  a  lecture  de- 
livered by  Professor  Jellineck  of  the  Heidelberg  University.  In 
discussing  international  law,  the  professor  said:  "The  Spanish 
American  war  was  of  immense  importance  in  the  future  develop- 
ment of  internationl  law.  America,  whose  policy  previously  had 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  357 

been  to  abstain,  in  accordance  with  the  principles  of  the  Mon- 
roe doctrine,  from  the  affairs  of  European  governments,  now 
abandoned  that  position  and  became  one  of  the  powers.  The  people 
are  divided  into  supporters  and  opponents  of  the  present  policy, 
and  if  the  former,  who  have  been  called  imperialists,  succeed  the 
organization  of  the  government  will  inevitably  become  similar  to 
that  of  European  countries;  individual  liberty — the  rights  of 
each  particular  man — will  be  sacrificed  in  securing  a  strong  central 
direction." 

The  German  professor  is  entirely  correct.  If  the  imperialists 
continue  in  authority,  the  organization  of  the  government  will 
gradually  be  changed  and  made  more  like  that  of  European  coun- 
tries. This  is  the  necessary  result  of  imperialism  and  it  is  because 
this  is  the  inevitable  end  of  an  imperialistic  policy  that  such  a  policy 
is  resolutely  opposed  by  democrats  who  love  a  republican  form 
of  government  and  who  believe  that  individual  liberty  and  self- 
government  are  infinitely  more  important  to  the  American  people 
than  anything  that  imperialism  can  bring. 


GETTING  DOWN  EAPIDLY. 

The  New  York  World,  in  its  issue  of  November  27,  printed 
under  a  Washington  date  a  statement  which  its  correspondent 
attributes  to  a  member  of  Mr.  Roosevelt's  cabinet.  This  cabinet 
member  is  reported  to  have  said  that  "all  the  leading  high  pro- 
tectionists of  the  country  have  seen  the  president's  message,  and 
all  are  satisfied  with  it.  Undoubtedly  it  will  strike  many  readers 
as  a  strong  reciprocity  message,  but  we  understand  that  if  it  is 
subjected  to  analysis  it  will  be  found  that  the  language  will  be 
susceptible  to  an  interpretation  that  will  give  cheer  to  every  pro- 
tectionist in  the  country,  who  has  been  fearful  that  something  would 
be  done  about  reciprocity  in  the  coming  congress." 

It  must  be  admitted  by  those  who  have  now  read  the  presi- 
dent's message  that  this  cabinet  member's  statement  was  an  ac- 
curate one.  Although  republican  papers  very  generally  commended 
Mr.  McKinley's  last  speech  at  Buffalo,  wherein  he  upheld  reci- 
procity, not  as  merely  the  "handmaiden  of  protection,"  but  as  an 
essential  departure  from  the  protective  theory,  the  same  papers 
did  not  hesitate  to  enthusiastically  commend  Mr.  Roosevelt's  mes- 


358  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

sage,  in  which,  as  accurately  anticipated  by  this  cabinet  member, 
the  supporters  of  reciprocity  obtained  no  encouragement. 

This  same  cabinet  member  is  quoted  by  the  World  as  indulging 
in  some  very  blunt  statements  regarding  Mr.  McKinley's  Buffalo 
speech.  This  is  what  this  cabinet  member  said : 

1  We  cannot  get  down  from  President  McKinley's  position  too 
rapidly.  That  would  be  unkind  to  his  memory  and  impolitic.  But 
we  can  get  down,  and  we  will,  and  by  the  end  of  the  Fifty-seventh 
congress  we  will  be  just  where  we  started,  with  no  reciprocity  of  any 
consequence  and  with  all  our  protection. 

There  you  have  it,  blunt  and  plain.  Although  Mr.  McKinley's 
last  speech  was  said  to  outline  the  future  policy  of  the  republican 
party,  here  we  have  a  cabinet  officer  making  the  frank  and  candid 
statement  that  in  the  repudiation  of  Mr.  McKinley's  position, 
in  deference  to  his  memory,  republican  leaders  will  go  slow;  and 
yet  that  position  will  be  repudiated,  and  in  spite  of  all  the  com- 
mendatory utterances  of  the  republican  press  concerning  the  Buf- 
falo speech,  "by  the  end  of  the  Fifty-seventh  congress,  we  will 
be  just  where  we  started,  with  no  reciprocity  of  any  consequence 
and  with  all  our  protection." 


REPUBLICANS  PREVENT  DISCUSSION. 

Since  the  adoption  of  the  Reed  rules  the  republicans  have  al- 
lowed but  scant  time  for  the  discussion  of  important  questions. 
They  often  bring  up  a  proposition,  rush  it  through  the  committee 
at  break-neck  sped,  adopt  a  rule  allowing  a  few  hours  for  debate 
and  dispose  of  it  before  the  people  at  large  know  what  is  going  on. 
When  the  Reed  rules  were  adopted  they  were  defended  on  the 
ground  that  they  were  intended  to  cut  off  filibustering,  but  they 
are  now  used  to  prevent  the  deliberation  necessary  to  intelligent 
action. 

While  the  democrats  are  powerless  to  secure  sufficient  time  for 
debate  so  long  as  the  republicans  are  disposed  to  deny  their  re- 
quest they  ought  to  register  a  protest  every  time  an  attempt  is 
made  to  summarily  dispose  of  important  measures.  The  democrats 
have  a  right  to  demand  a  roll  call  and  on  roll  call  they  can  vote 
no,  thus  throwing  upon  the  republicans  responsibility  for  any  un- 
reasonable curtailment  of  discussion. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  359 

The  time  allowed  for  debate  on  the  Philippine  tariff  was  grossly 
inadequate,  and  in  view  of  the  time  wasted  by  adjournments  and 
recesses,  the  limitation  was  utterly  inexcusable.  Other  bills  will 
be  pressed  involving  the  welfare  of  the  whole  country,  and  the 
democrats  ought  to  see  to  it  that  there  is  ample  time  for  debate 
or  at  least  compel  the  republicans  to  bear  the  odium  that  must 
ultimately  fall  upon  those  who  prevent  a  thorough  discussion  of 
public  questions.  If  the  democrats  agree  to  a  rule  which  follows 
too  limited  a  debate,  they  then  share  responsibility  with  the  re- 
publicans; when  they  resist  the  rule  they  compel  the  republicans 
to  bear  the  responsibility  alone.  A  resolute  and  persistent  op- 
position on  the  part  of  the  democratic  minority  will  force  the 
republicans  to  give  more  time  to  debate  than  will  be  allowed 
if  the  democrats  surrender  their  contention  on  the  theory  that  a 
contest  is  useless. 

No  effort  is  useless  which  calls  public  attention  to  vicious  meas- 
ures ;  no  debate  is  profitless  which  informs  the  public  in  regard  to 
those  measures. 


UNJUST  DISCRIMINATION. 

The  post  office  department  is  discriminating  against  newspapers 
published  in  the  interest  of  political  reforms.  The  Challenge,  a 
socialistic  paper  published  at  Los  Angeles  and  later  at  New  York; 
the  Appeal  to  Reason,  a  socialistic  paper  published  at  Girard,  Kan- 
sas: the  Farmers'  Advocate,  of  Topeka,  Kansas,  and  the  Pawnee 
Chief,  of  Pawnee  City,  Nebraska  (both  the  latter  antagonistic  to 
republican  policies),  have  recently  been  asked  to  show  cause  why 
they  should  not  be  denied  second  class  rates.  The  post  office  de- 
partment justified  its  action  in  regard  to  The  Challenge  on  the 
ground  that  that  paper  was  violating  the  following  provision  of 
the  statute:  Provided,  however,  that  nothing  herein  contained 
shall  be  construed  as  to  admit  to  the  second  class  rate  regular 
publications  designed  primarily  for  advertising  purposes  or  for 
free  circulation  at  nominal  rates."  It  was  asserted  by  the  depart- 
ment that  The  Challenge  was  the  personal  organ  of  its  owner  and 
publisher ;  that  it  was  a  vehicle  for  his  articles  on  public  questions, 
the  announcement  of  his  lecture  subjects  and  their  places  and 
dates;  the  printing  of  those  lectures  or  speeches  after  delivery; 


360  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

the  printing  of  newspaper  comment  thereon,  and  also  the  printing 
of  letters  and  invitations  to  speak  and  the  replies  of  the  editor 
thereto. 

The  department  alleged  that  these  things  filled  the  columns  of 
the  publication;  that  it  contained  little  or  no  matter  which  did 
not  pertain  to  the  editor,  and  that  he  confessed  his  intention  to 
advertise  himself,  his  sayings  and  his  doings.  \ 

Whether  the  editor  conducted  his  paper  in  a  modest  way  or 
whether  he  unduly  injected  himself  into  his  paper  is  not  a  ques- 
tion with  which  the  post  office  department  has  anything  to  do. 
The  third  assistant  postmaster  general  is  not  a  censor  in  the  sense 
that  he  is  to  supervise  the  editorial  management  of  a  paper.  If 
the  editor  of  The  Challenge  advertises  himself  in  such  a  way  as 
to  make  the  paper  offensive  to  his  readers,  the  readers  have  their 
remedy ;  they,  can  refuse  to  receive  his  paper. 

In  regard  to  the  Appeal  to  Reason  the  post  office  department 
claims  that  it  violated  the  ruling  requiring  approximately  half  of 
the  circulation  to  he  composed  of  subscriptions  paid  for  by  bona  fide 
subscribers.  The  department  resorted  to  the  test  which  is  cus- 
tomary in  such  cases,  namely,  it  sent  out  inquiries  to  one  hundred 
of  the  readers  asking  whether  they  were  bona  fide  subscribers, 
and  received  answers  from  sixty-six.  Out  of  sixty-six  thirty-seven 
claimed  that  they  were  subscribers,  while  twenty-nine  denied  that 
they  were  subscribers.  Thirty-four  did  not  answer  at  all. 

Upon  this  showing  an  order  was  issued  denying  the  paper 
second  class  privileges  until  it  could  show  that  approximately  half 
of  its  readers  were  bona  fide  subscribers.  This  test  is  not  a  fair  one. 
Because  a  letter  to  a  subscriber  was  not  answered  or  because  the 
answer  was  delayed  until  the  department  had  already  acted  does 
not  raise  a  presumption  sufficiently  strong  to  justify  the  depart- 
ment in  putting  the  publisher  to  the  expense  of  a  trial.  The 
answers  received  furnish  information,  but  unanswered  letters 
ought  not  to  count  against  the  publisher. 

In  the  case  of  the  Appeal  to  Reason  a  clear  majority  of  those 
who  answered  claimed  to  be  subscribers. 

The  charge  made  against  the  Farmers'  'Advocate  was  that  it 
did  not  comply  with  the  law  requiring  that  a  majority  of  the  cir- 
culation be  composed  of  bona  fide  subscriptions.  Just  how  the 
test  was  made  is  not  known,  but  if  it  was  made  as  it  was  in  the 
case  of  the  Appeal  to  Reason,  what  has  been  said  in  that  case  will; 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  361 

apply  to  the  Farmers'  Advocate.  It  may  be  added  that  the  Advo- 
cate has  been  put  to  this  trouble  so  often  that  it  smacks  of  per- 
secution. 

The  charge  against  the  Pawnee  Chief  was  that  it  was  conducted 
primarily  for  advertising  purposes.  As  the  editor  has  presented 
his  proofs  on  the  subject  it  is  probable  that  the  case  will  be  de- 
cided in  his  favor  and  that  he  will  be  relieved  from  further  em- 
barrassment. But  there  is  evidence  of  the  purpose  of  the  depart- 
ment to  discriminate  against  political  papers. 

While  it  is  perfectly  proper  that  there  should  be  a  reasonable 
proportion  between  the  number  of  actual  subscribers  and  the  total 
circulation  (and  the  proportion  fixed  is  reasonable)  the  department 
has  issued  an  order  which  is  unjust  to  papers  which  are  published 
in  the  interest  of  legislative  reform.  According  to  the  ruling 
of  the  department  a  "reasonable  number"  of  papers  can  be  sub- 
scribed for  by  others  and  counted  among  bona  fide  subscriptions, 
provided  the  paper  is  not  subscribed  for  ''because  of  the  doctrines 
it  advocates  or  because  of  the  goods  it  advertises."  In  other 
words,  if  a  man  is  interested  in  a  paper  because  it  gives  the  most 
foreign  news  or  the  most  domestic  news  or  the  best  report  of 
prize  fights  or  the  most  complete  review  of  criminal  doings  or  of 
divorce  proceedings,  it  is  perfectly  proper  to  send  it  to  a.  friend, 
but  if  he  .subscribes  for  the  paper  because  it  discusses  political 
questions  in  which  he  is  interested,  the  subscription  cannot  be 
counted  in  the  "legitimate  list  of  subscribers."  It  would  be  difficult 
to  conceive  of  a  more  unfair  discrimination  against  reform  papers. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  a  rule  more  capable  of  misuse  and 
tyrannical  abuse,  and  the  present  congress  should  immediately 
take  such  action  as  will  be  necessary  to  correct  this  ruling.  To 
say  that  a  paper  which  has  no  political  principles  shall  have  an 
advantage  over  a  paper  which  has  political  principles  is  worse 
than  ridiculous.  To  say  that  an  editor  who  is  more  interested  in 
current  news  than  he  is  in  the  science  of  government  should  have 
an  advantage  over  an  editor  who  endeavors  to  make  his  paper 
instrumental  in  securing  good  government  is  a  reflection  upon 
the  intelligence  or  the  patriotism  of  the  man  who  is  responsible 
for  the  order. 

At  this  time  the  rule  can  be  used  to  discriminate  against  demo- 
cratic papers,  but  under  a  democratic  administration  the  same 
rule  might  be  used  to  discriminate  against  republican  papers.  The 


362  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

fact  that  it  is  just  now  used  to  discriminate  against  socialistic 
papers  does  not  alter  the  case.  THE  COMMONER  is  not  an  advocate 
of  the  doctrines  supported  by  The  Challenge  and  the  Appeal  to 
Reason,  but  THE  COMMONER  is  an  advocate  of  free  speech  and 
of  a  free  press,  and  it  does  insist  that  discussion  is  the  only  means 
of  arriving  at  the  truth.  If  an  editor  has  anything  to  say  in 
regard  to  political  principles  or  public  policies,  let  him  say  it. 
If  his  reasoning  is  sound,  his  cause  will  grow;  if  his  argument 
is  faulty,  his  cause  twill  fail.  Let  him  appeal  to  public  opinion; 
before  that  court  all  questions  are  finally  settled,  and  we  must 
assume  that  under  free  discussion  they  will  be  settled  right.  If  a 
man  reads  a  paper  and  likes  it,  he  ought  to  be  permitted  to  subscribe 
for  it  for  his  neighbor;  if  his  neighbor  accepts  the  paper  he  is  a 
subscriber  as  much  as  if  he  paid  for  it  himself.  If  he  does  not 
want  the  paper  he  can  refuse  to  receive  it,  and  then  the  paper 
cannot  be  counted  in  the  list  of  legitimate  subscribers. 

It  is  necessary  that  we  should  have  laws  defining  and  limiting  the 
postal  privileges,  but  in  construing  them  the  department  should 
observe  the  spirit  of  the  laws  and  not  pervert  them  to  suit  the 
whims  or  prejudice  of  the  man  at  the  head  of  the  department. 


AN  INSTANCE  OF  TAX  DODGING. 

One  of  the  companies  established  to  facilitate  the  organization 
of  trusts  has  issued  an  interesting  little  pamphlet  setting  forth  the 
advantages  of  New  Jersey  over  New  York.  At  the  same  time 
the  pamphlet  throws  a  side  light  upon  the  motives  of  the 
republican  governor  of  New  York.  It  quotes  the  New  York 
Herald  of  December  6  as  saying:  "It  was  in  the  hope  of  attract- 
ing aggregations  of  capital  to  incorporate  in  this  state  that  the 
governor  had  the  last  legislature  to  pass  an  act  liberalizing  the 
corporation  laws  by  reducing  the  organization  taxes  from  one- 
eighth  of  one  per  cent,  to  one-twentieth  of  one  per  cent,  of  their 
capitalization,  besides  making  additional  exemptions  favorable  to 
concerns  which  obtain  their  charters  here." 

The  Herald  complains  that  even  these  concessions  were  not 
sufficient  to  induce  the  Northern  Securities  company  to  take  out 
a  New  York  charter,  as  New  Jersey  was  even  more  liberal.  The 
pamphlet  says:  "The  laws  of  New. Jersey  governing  the  formation 


The  Commomer  Condensed.  363 

and  management  of  corporations  are  so  framed  as  to  invite  confi- 
dence and  investment."  In  another  sentence  the  pamphlet  pays  i 
doubtful  compliment  to  the  New  Jersey  courts,  saying :  "The  judi- 
ciary of  New  Jersey  is  above  reproach  and  corporations  organized 
in  that  State  are  not  subject  to  nonsensical  attacks." 

Any  law  or  regulation  that  has  for  its  object  the  protection  of 
the  public  or  the  compelling  of  a  corporation  to  bear  its  share  of 
public  burdens  is  always  considered  "nonsensical"  by  those  who  de- 
rive profit  from  favoritism  shown  great  corporations. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  difference  between  New  York  and  New 
Jersey  the  pamphlet  says:  "In  the  year  1899  the  United  Verde 
Copper  Company  as  a  New  York  corporation  paid  to  New  York  city 
taxes  to  about  the  amount  of  $34,000  on  an  assessed  valuation  of 
$1,433,920,  to  which  the  court  of  appeals  said  one  million  more 
might  properly  have  been  added.  In  the  year  1900  the  United 
Yerde  Copper  Company,  as  a  foreign  corporation,  paid  to  New  York 
city  taxes  to  the  amount  of  $235  on  an  assessed  valuation  of  $10,000. 
In  each  case  the  capitalization,  assets  and  business  of  the  corpora- 
tion were  the  same.  The  difference  in  annual  charges  between  $34,- 
000  and  $235  represents  the  net  disadvantage  of  a  New  York  cor- 
poration." 

Instead  of  making  the  laws  of  New  York  more  favorable  to 
corporations  organized  there,  why  not  make  the  laws  more  stringent 
in  regard  to  the  foreign  corporations  doing  business  there?  In  the 
instance  above  cited  the  people  of  New  York  city  lost  nearly  $34,000 
in  taxes  by  a  nominal  change  in  the  residence  of  the  company,  and 
the  rest  of  the  people  had  to  pay  a  little  more  in  taxes  to  make  up 
for  the  loss. 

The  only  remedy  suggested  by  corporations  and  friends  of 
corporations  is  to  relieve  resident  corporations  of  nearly  all  taxation 
in  order  to  induce  them  to  remain  in  the  state,  notwithstanding  the 
fact  that  such  a  policy  would  permanently  increase  the  burden  upon 
the  small  property  holders. 

When  Tom  Johnson  wins  his  Ohio  fight  against  the  tax  dodg- 
ers he  ought  to  go  to  New  York  and  give  some  lessons  down  there. 
Or,  if  Mr.  Johnson  cannot  be  spared  from  Ohio,  probably  Judge 
Owen  P.  Thompson  of  Illinois  might  go  to  the  Empire  State  and 
with  the  assistance  of  a  few  school  teachers  bring  the  corporations  to 
time  as  he  has  done  in  his  own  state. 


364  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


MONOPOLY  DEFINED. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  asks  for  a  definition  of  a  private 
monopoly.  According  to  one  of  the  dictionaries  "monopoly"  is 
defined  as  "the  exclusive  right,  power,  or  privilege  of  engaging 
in  a  particular  traffic  or  business,  or  the  resulting  absolute  posses- 
sion or  control;  especially,  in  political  economy,  such  control  of  a 
special  thing,  as  a  commodity,  as  enables  the  person  or  persons 
exercising  it  to  raise  the  price  above  its  real  value  or  above  the 
price  it  would  bring  under  competition." 

The  essential  thing  in  monopoly  is  the  suspension  of  the  law  of 
competition.  If  an  individual,  or  a  group  of  individuals  acting  in 
concert  control  all  of  a  certain  product,  or  a  sufficient  amount  to 
enable  them  to  arbitrarily  fix  the  price  of  the  thing  produced, 
they  have  what  is  called  a  monopoly.  When  such  a  monopoly 
is  in  private  hands,  the  public  has  no  protection  from  the  selfish 
interest  and  greed  of  those  at  the  head  of  the  monopoly.  It  is 
because  human  beings  cannot  be  entrusted  with  such  power  that 
the  democratic  party  has  denounced  a  private  monopoly  as  inde- 
fensible and  intolerable. 

The  same  reader  asks  whether  there  is  any  difference  between 
the  private  monopolies  complained  of  by  the  democratic  party 
and  the  "private  monopolies  of  land  values."  There  is  no  analogy 
between  the  private  ownership  of  land  and  the  private  monopolies 
so  generally  complained  of.  Whether  there  should  be  private 
ownership  of  land,  and  whether  the  whole  people,  acting  through 
the  government,  should  collect  a  tax  equivalent  to  the  rental 
value — these  questions  can  be  decided  upon  their  merits,  but 
they  ought  not  to  be  confused  with  the  question  of  private  monop- 
oly. If  so  much  of  the  land  was  owned  by  one  person,  or  by  a 
group  of  persons  acting  in  concert,  that  competition  between  land 
owners  was  practically  suspended — in  such  a  case  there  would  be 
an  analogy  between  the  land  monopoly  and  the  private  monopolies 
against  which  legislation  is  being  considered.  At  present  there 
is  competition  between  individual  owners  of  land,  and  this  com- 
petition makes  it  possible  to  secure  land  at  a  price  which  is 
proportionate  to  the  income  that  can  be  derived  from  it. 

It  has  been  the  policy  of  the  government  to  grant  to  inventor- 
a  limited  monopoly  upon  their  product  in  order  to  encourage 
invention.  Wh«n  an  inventor  brings  into  existence  a  new  and 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  365 

useful  appliance,  he  has  as  a  reward  the  exclusive  sale  of  it  for 
a  period  of  years.  The  fact  that  this  monopoly  is  limited,  is 
evidence  that  the  general  principle  of  monopoly  is  objectionable. 
A  value  limit  ought  to  be  added  to  the  time  limit  so  that  a 
patent  would  become  null  and  void  as  soon  as  a  reasonable  amount, 
a  sum  to  be  fixed  by  law,  is  realized  from  the  invention. 


FINANCIAL  LEGISLATION. 

For  the  benefit  of  those  who  have  talked  so  much  about  the 
money  question  being  dead,  THE  COMMONER  calls  attention  to  the 
fact  that  in  accordance  with  the  plans  of  the  bankers  bills  have 
already  been  introduced  into  congress  providing  for  the  gold 
redemption  of  silver  dollars  and  for  an  asset  currency.  The  object 
of  the  former  is  to  start  a  new  endless  chain  which  will  give  the 
financiers  an  excuse  for  demanding  the  retirement  of  the  legal 
tender  silver  dollars.  The  asset  currency  measure  provides  for 
the  issue  of  guaranteed  bank  notes  by  national  banks.  For  the 
first  three  years  the  bank  can  only  issue  20  per  cent,  of  the  face 
value  of  United  States  bonds  deposited  with  the  government  to 
secure  bank  notes  already  issued,  and  the  new  guaranteed  notes 
shall  not  exceed  10  per  cent,  of  the  paid  up  and  unimpaired 
capital  of  the  bank.  After  three  years  the  amount  may  be 
increased  to  40  per  cent,  of  the  bonds  deposited  and  20  per  cent,  of 
the  capital  of  the  bank.  After  six  years  the  bank  can  increase 
the  amount  to  80  per  cent,  of  the  bonds  and  40  per  cent,  of  the 
capital.  These  notes  are  a  lien  upon  the  assets  of  the  bank  and 
are  secured  by  a  guarantee  fund  collected  from  the  banks  and 
amounting  to  5  per  cent,  of  the  guaranteed  notes  outstanding. 
The  banks  are  to  pay  a  tax  of  one-half  of  1  per  cent,  on  the 
guaranteed  notes  issued. 

The  remaining  provisions  are  similar  to  those  relating  to  the 
present  issue  of  bank  notes.  It  ought  not  to  be  necessary  to  point 
out  that  this  new  currency  not  only  gives  great  advantage  to 
the  banks,  but  also  impairs  the  security  of  depositors.  If  40  per 
cent,  of  the  bank's  capital  is  represented  by  bank  notes  outstanding 
and  any  misfortune  overtakes  the  bank,  the  depositor  has  less 
protection  than  under  the  present  system — and  he  has  little 
enough  now.  It  will  soon  become  evident  to  the  plain  people  that 


366  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

the  republican  financial  policy  not  only  involves  the  gold  standard 
and  a  national  bank  currency,  but  it  involves  the  manipulation  of 
the  treasury  department  and  the  whole  financial  system  in  the 
interests  of  the  bankers,  money-owners  and  money-loaners. 

So  far  as  the  treasury  department  is  concerned,  this  is  to  be 
a  government  of  the  banks,  by  the  banks  and  for  the  banks,  so 
long  as  the  republican  party  is  in  power. 

These  financial  measures  will  furnish  the  democrats  of  the 
house  and  senate  a  splendid  opportunity  to  point  out  the  complete 
subserviency  of  the  republican  leaders  to  the  money  power. 


STEADFASTNESS. 

Among  the  traits  of  character  which  distinguished  Andrew 
Jackson,  no  trait  was  more  prominent  or  more  helpful  to  his 
country  than  his  steadfastness.  When  he  believed  a  thing,  he 
believed  it.  Where  duty  led,  he  followed  without  questioning. 
When  he  decided  that  anything  ought  to  be  done,  he  did  it,  and 
no  power  could  overawe  him.  He  did  not  have  in  his  veins  a 
single  drop  of  "anything  to  win"  blood.  When  Nicholas  Biddle 
declared  that  through  the  national  bank  he  could  make  and 
unmake  congresses,  Jackson  replied  that  that  was  more  power 
than  any  one  man  ought  to  have  in  this  country,  and  he  then 
began  his  war  against  Biddle  and  his  bank  which  resulted  in 
the  overflow  of  that  great  financier  and  the  institution  which  he 
so  autocratically  controlled.  Others  were  afraid  that  Biddle's 
influence,  if  antagonized,  would  defeat  the  democratic  party,  but 
Jackson  saw  in  it  a  menace  to  his  country  and  he  did  not  stop 
to  consider  what  effect  an  attack  on  the  bank  would  have  on 
himself  or  on  his  party.  He  won,  and  we  revere  his  name  and 
celebrate  his  day.  Benton,  in  reviewing  Jackson's  work,  said 
that,  as  Cicero  overthrew  the  conspiracy  of  Cataline  and  saved 
Eome,  so  Jackson  overthrew  the  bank  conspiracy  and  saved 
America. 

We  shall  observe  this  day  in  vain  if  we  fail  to  gather  from  the 
life  of  Jackson  inspiration  and  encouragement  for  the  work  which 
lies  before  us.  To-da-y,  the  democratic  party  needs  to  learn  from 
the  hero  of  New  Orleans  the  lesson  of  steadfastness;  it  needs  to 
learn  from  him,  not  only  that  to  be  right  is  more  important  than 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  367 

to  be  successful,  but  that  to  be  right  is  the  best  way  to  insure 
puccess. 

A  party  must  have  principles  or  it  can  have  no  claim  upon  public 
confidence;  and  how  can  it  commend  its  principles  better  than  by 
standing  by  them?  Who  will  have  faith  in  the  creed  of  a  party 
if  the  party  stands  ready  to  barter  away  its  creed  in  exchange  for 
the  promise  of  patronage?  A  halting,  hesitating,  vacillating 
course,  not  only  fails  to  invite  recruits,  but  it  alienates  and  drives 
away  veterans. 

Another  reason  for  steadfastness  is  found  in  the  fact  that 
no  one  can  tell  until  the  attempt  is  made  what  obstacles  courage 
can  overcome.  The  bold  and  fearless  triumph  where  the  timid 
fail.  The  victories  which  live  and  light  us  on  to  noble  deeds 
are  the  victories  snatched  from  the  jaws  of  defeat  by  intrepid 
spirits  who  preferred  death  to  retreat. 

There  is  a  profound  philosophy,  as  well  as  a  religious  truth,  in 
the  words :  "He  that  saveth  his  life  shall  lose  it."  The  party  that 
has  no  higher  purpose  than  to  save  its  own  life  will  die  because 
it  deserves  to  die ;  the  party  that  is  willing  to  die,  if  need  be,  for 
the  sake  of  a  great  cause,  will  live  because  it  deserves  to  live. 

Who  says  that  the  money  power  is  omnipotent,  and  that  the 
democratic  party  must  compromise  with  it  or  surrender  to  it? 
Not  until  human  nature  is  entirely  changed  can  the  financiers  be 
entrusted  with  the  guardianship  of  the  producers  of  wealth;  not 
until  greed  becomes  just  can  the  money  changers  construct  a 
system  for  themselves  which  will  be  fair  to  any  one  else.  A 
top  can  be  balanced  upon  the  point  only  when  it  is  in  rapid 
motion,  and  so  the  financial  structure  designed  by  Wall  Street  for 
the  benefit  of  Wall  Street,  will  stand  upright  only  so  long  as  it 
can  be  kept  whirling;  the  collapse  will  come  when  the  speed  is 
slackened. 

Who  says  that  we  cannot  afford  to  measure  strength  with  the 
great  monopolies  which  now  arrogantly  assume  to  control  the 
domain  of  politics  as  well  as  the  field  of  industry?  Not  until  we 
can  gather  good  fruit  from  an  evil  tree,  and  figs  from  thistles, 
can  we  expect  a  private  monopoly  to  bring  forth  public  blessings. 
The  water  that  has  been  poured  into  the  stocks  of  our  great  cor- 
porations has  for  the  most  part  been  drawn  from  the  agricultural 
regions,  and  the  drouth  that  is  sure  to  follow  will  teach  the 
farmers  the  meaning  of  the  trust  system. 


368  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Must  we  abandon  the  self-evident  truth  that  governments  derive 
their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed?  Must  we 
accept  imperialism  as  an  accomplished  fact  and  join  in  the  shout 
for  blood  and  conquest?  Our  republic  rests  upon  solid  rock  and 
while  its  principles  are  revered  it  cannot  be  overthrown  from  with- 
in or  from  without ;  but  if  all  the  members  of  all  parties  joined  to- 
gether to  erect  an  empire  upon  American  soil  they  would  build 
upon  the  sand  and  the  edifice  could  not  endure.  It  is  a  law  divine 
in  its  origin,  irresistible  in  its  force  and  eternal  in  its  duration, 
that  wrong-doing  ultimately  destroys  the  wrong-doer ;  no  nation  or 
combination  of  nations  is  strong  enough  to  evade  or  resist  retribu- 
tive justice. 

But  suppose — what  no  one  should  assume  and  what  no  one  can 
prove — that  the  steadfast  adherence  to  democratic  principles  would 
result  in  repeated  defeat,  is  that  any  reason  why  we  should  abandon 
those  principles  and  adopt  others,  or  have  none  at  all  ?  Those  who 
prefer  prison  fare  or  a  servile  subject's  lot  to  the  dangers  of  the 
battlefield  may  condemn  the  Boers  for  continuing  what  some  de- 
scribe as  a  hopeless  struggle  for  independence,  but  those  who  can 
measure  the  mighty  influence  of  great  deeds  know  that  the  sturdy 
Dutchmen  of  South  Africa  have  already  conferred  upon  the  world 
a  benefit  that  cannot  be  measured  by  money.  Their  valor  has  brought 
greater  security  to  all  the  republics  of  the  earth ;  the  bodies  of  their 
dead  have  built  a  bulwark  behind  which  the  friends  of  liberty  will 
fight  for  centuries.  The  fact  that  England  has  been  compelled  to 
employ  more  than  200,000  soldiers  to  subjugate  less  than  25,000 
men  in  arms — the  fact  that  England  has  expended  more  than  $1,000 
per  Boer — the  per  capita  wealth  of  the  United  States — and  has 
neither  been  able  to  purchase  them  nor  to  kill  them — these  facts  are 
immeasurably  valuable  to  people  everywhere  who  want  free  govern- 
ment for  themselves  and  are  content  that  others  should  enjoy  it  also. 

So,  the  democratic  party,  whether  in  power  or  out  of  power,  is 
serving  mankind  when  it  stands  steadfastly  for  constitutional  gov- 
ernment and  insists  that  that  government  shall  be  administered 
according  to  the  Jeffersonian  maxim,  "Equal  rights  to  all  and 
special  privileges  to  none." 

The  poet  laureate  of  England  has  written  some  verse?  setting 
forth  the  idea  that  England  and  the  United  States  should  be  united 
as  against  the  world  and  "stand  or  fall  together."  That  there  should 
be  a  friendly  feeling  between  the  people  of  this  country  and  the 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  369 

people  of  England  is  perfectly  proper.  There  should  be  a  friendly 
feeling  between  the  people  of  this  country  and  the  people  of  all 
countries.  But  a  distinction  should  be  drawn  between  the  people 
and  the  government  of  a  nation.  The  English  government  is  a 
monarchy,  limited,  it  is  true,  in  so  far  as  the  people  have  been  able 
to  limit  it,  but  still  a  monarchy.  Between  the  English  monarchy 
and  the  American  republic  there  can  be  no  sympathy.  Can  the 
American  people  consent  to  an  alliance  which  will  bring  upon  our 
nation  either  responsibility  for  wrongs  done  by  the  English  govern- 
ment or  a  share  of  the  punishment  which  must  ultimately  be  in- 
flicted upon  wrong-doers,  whether  they  be  individuals  or  nations  ? 

England  is  sowing  the  wind;  she  will  reap  a  whirlwind.  This 
nation  cannot  join  hands  with  her  without  adopting  her  policies  and 
finally  sharing  in  the  terrible  retribution  which  will  come.  Wash- 
ington, Jefferson,  and  all  the  other  early  patriots  warned  us  against 
entangling  alliances,  even  when  those  alliances  might  have  strength- 
ened us.  What  excuse  can  there  be  for  an  alliance  now,  when  we 
are  strong  enough  to  protect  ourselves  against  all  comers  ? 

We  cannot  afford  to  be  "unequally  yoked  together"  with  any 
government  which  recognizes  force  as  the  basis  of  government  or  in 
its  administration  disregards  the  doctrine  that  governments  are  the 
creatures,  not  the  masters,  of  the  people. 


HILL'S  TEMPTING  OFFEE. 

The  press  dispatches  announce  that  Mr.  Hill,  the  financial 
magnate  who  controls  the  Northern  Pacific  and  Great  Northern 
railroads,  intends  to  meet  the  rising  protest  against  consolidation 
by  making  a  material  reduction  in  rates.  This  adroit  move  on 
the  part  of  Mr.  Hill  will  deceive  many  of  the  unwary  and  will 
be  immediately  utilized  by  corporation  politicians.  It  ought  not, 
however,  to  influence  any  thoughtful  and  patriotic  citizen.  That 
a  monopoly  can  be  benevolent  is  true ;  that  it  may  make  concessions 
when  it  has  something  to  gain  thereby  is  probable,  but  that  it  will 
in  the  long  run  be  safe  or  helpful  is  impossible.  A  king  has  been 
known  to  make  concessions  to  his  subjects  in  order  to  save  his  life, 
and  some  kings  have  felt  a  genuine  interest  in  the  welfare  of  all 
their  people,  but  can  a  monarchy  be  defended  on  these  grounds  ? 

To  understand  a  monopoly,  whether  it  be  a  railroad  monopoly 


370  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

or  some  other  private  monopoly,  one  only  needs  to  know  human 
nature.  Human  nature  is  so  constructed  that  arbitrary  power  in 
the  industrial  field,  as  in  the  domain  of  government,  is  so  likely 
to  be  abused  that  it  cannot  be  justified  or  defended.  Governor  Van 
Sant  will,  of  course,  understand  that  Mr.  Hill  will  be  quite  a  dif- 
ferent railroad  president  after  he  secures  a  legal  right  to  control 
the  traffic  of  the  northwest,  from  what  he  is  now,  when  he  is  try- 
ing to  secure  this  right,  and  the  governor  will  be  justified  in  quot- 
ing an  old  saying  that  has  been  applied  to  many  people  in  the  past, 
is  applicable  to  many  who  are  alive  now,  and  will  not  lose  its  force 
in  years  to  come — namely, 

When  the  devil  was  sick  the  devil  a  saint  would  be, 
When  the  devil  was  well  the  devil  a  saint  was  he. 

Mr.  Hill  is  quite  saintly  just  now  because  he  is  sick.  He  is  tak- 
ing the  people  into  his  confidence  because  he  needs  them  in  his 
business,  but  when  Mr.  Hill  is  once  secure  in  his  monopoly  he 
will  not  need  the  people  as  he  does  now,  and  then  he  will  still  "take 
them  in" — but  not  into  his  confidence.  And  even  if  Mr.  Hill  is 
so  good  a  man  as  to  be  entirely  safe,  it  must  be  remembered  that 
Mr.  Hill  is  mortal,  and  when  he  dies — as  die  some  day  he  must — 
he  may  be  succeeded  by  a  cold  and  selfish  man,  who  will  use  the 
monopoly  which  Mr.  Hill  is  trying  to  secure  without  any  considera- 
tion whatever  for  the  people's  welfare. 

Governor  Van  Sant  ought  to  plant  himself  upon  the  plank  of 
the  democratic  platform  which  declares  a  private  monopoly  to  be 
"indefensible  and  intolerable."  If  he  will  take  this  position  he 
can  appeal  with  confidence  to  all  the  democrats  in  the  northwest 
and  these,  with  a  few  republicans,  will  give  him  a  majority. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  371 


XVIII , 
RESPONSIBILITY  FOE  ANARCHY. 

When  congress  is  called  upon  to  consider  measures  aimed  at 
the  suppression  of  anarchy  there  will  probably  be  some  discussion 
of  the  causes  which  produce  anarchy,  and  if  the  republican  mem- 
bers of  congress  follow  the  example  set  by  republican  editors,  they 
will  attempt  to  place  upon  the  democratic  party  responsibility  for 
recent  manifestations  of  the  anarchistic  spirit  in  the  United  States. 
If  such  a  charge  is  made  it  must  not  only  be  met  by  the  democrats, 
but  it  should  be  met  with  arguments  which  will  show  that  the  real 
cause  of  anarchy  is  to  be  found  in  republican  politics  rather  than  in 
democratic  speeches. 

Republican  papers  are  in  the  habit  of  charging  the  democrats 
with  arousing  passions  and  stirring  up  hatred,  malice  and  envy. 
Anarchy  is  a  protest  against  all  forms  of  government,  and  no  demo- 
crat has  said  anything  or  done  anything  to  give  encouragement  to 
that  doctrine.  The  democrats  believe  in  government,  and  they  show 
their  love  of  government  by  trying  to  so  improve  it  that  it  will  com- 
mand the  confidence  of  all  the  people.  The  physician  who  suggests 
rules  for  health  and  applies  restoratives  in  sickness  is  a  better  friend 
than  the  one  who  encourages  dissipation  and  scoffs  at  the  approach 
of  disease. 

Republican  papers  are  in  the  habit  of  charging  democrats  with 
stirring  up  class  prejudice  and  hatred.  This  would  be  a  serious 
charge  if  founded  upon  fact,  and  it  raises  the  question :  Is  it  wrong 
to  criticise  a  public  official,  or  to  point  out  the  evil  effects  of  a 
policy?  If  so,  how  is  a  reform  to  be  accomplished?  Must  we  as- 
sume that  the  president  not  only  can  do  no  wrong,  but  can  make  no 
mistake?  When  the  Wilson  bill  was  passed  republican  papers  all 
over  the  country  claimed  that  mills  were  closed,  that  men  were 
thrown  out  of  employment,  and  that  destitution  and  starvation  were 
brought  to  tens  of  thousands  of  people.  If  some  man  out  of  work 
had  taken  a  notion  to  kill  the  author  of  the  bill,  the  congressmen 
and  senators  who  voted  for  it,  or  the  president  who  permitted  it  to 


372  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

become  a  law  and  then  enforced  its  provisions,  would  the  republican 
editors  have  been  morally  responsible  for  the  assassination  ? 

The  republican  newspapers  and  speakers  charged  that  the 
panic  of  1893  was  due  to  the  agitation  of  the  money  question.  That 
panic  broke  up  business  men,  suspended  enterprises  and  largely  in- 
creased the  necessity  for  charity.  If  some  one  who  suffered  by  the 
panic  had  undertaken  to  avenge  himself  by  killing  the  advocates  of 
bimetallism,  would  the  republican  editors  have  been  morally  re- 
sponsible for  the  act? 

The  New  York  Sun  recently  declared  that  the  overthrow  of  the 
trusts  would  cause  terrible  industrial  disasters  and  the  same  charge 
has  been  made  by  other  republican  papers.  Suppose  some  man  who 
has  faith  in  the  judgment  of  the  editor  of  the  Sun  undertakes  to 
prevent  the  predicted  calamity  by  killing  the  men  who  are  trying 
to  exterminate  the  trusts,  will  the  Sun  be  responsible  for  the  act  ? 

No  rule  is  sound  which  is  not  of  general  application.  If  the 
democrats  must  abstain  from  criticism  for  fear  some  ignorant  or 
vicious  man  may  resort  to  force  instead  of  the  ballot  to  correct  the 
wrong,  the  rule  must  apply  to  republicans  as  well,  and  we  must  sus- 
pend entirely  the  discussion  of  these  questions.  The  republicans  say 
that  the  democrats  attempt  to  array  class  against  class.  In  the  first 
place  this  is  untrue  in  the  sense  in  which  the  republicans  use  the 
term,  and  in  the  second  place  every  editor  who  makes  this  charge  is 
more  guilty  than  those  whom  he  accuses.  The  republicans  coined 
the  phrases,  "home  industries"  and  "infant  industries" ;  they  have 
appealed  to  the  manufacturers  as  a  class  and  collected  large  cam- 
paign funds  from  them  on  the  ground  that  they  are  specially  inter- 
ested in  republican  policies.  They  have  constantly  arrayed  the 
interests  of  one  portion  of  the  population  against  the  interests 
of  another  portion.  In  1896  they  charged  that  the  mine  owners 
were  seeking  to  secure  an  advantage  at  the  expense  of  the  rest 
of  the  people,  and  they  asserted  that  debtors  were  trying  to  get 
out  of  debt  by  the  use  of  cheap  dollars;  they  excited  the  fears 
of  bankers;  they  frightened  depositors;  they  coerced  employes. 
They  never  hesitated  to  attack  any  class  or  any  portion  of  the 
country  that  opposed  republican  policies.  In  the  campaign  of 
1900  they  claimed  credit  for  better  times,  and  said  that  a  panic 
would  follow  a  change  in  administration.  When  they  appealed 
to  the  religiously  inclined,  they  represented  imperialism  as  a 
divinely  appointed  chance  for  missionary  enterprise.  When  they 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  373 

appealed  to  the  commercially  inclined,  they  represented  it  as 
a  profitable  venture,  and  to  those  with  an  ambition  for  office  they 
held  out  the  possibilities  of  foreign  service.  They  have  never 
hesitated  to  tickle  the  palate  of  the  tax-eater  with  promises  of 
rich  reward,  and  yet  they  complain  if  the  attention  of  the  tax- 
payer is  called  to  the  fact  that  he  must  pay  the  bill.  The  republi- 
can editors  cannot  point  to  a  word  spoken  or  an  act  done  by 
those  who  believe  in  democratic  doctrines  which  has  not  more 
than  its  counterpart  in  the  constant  practice  of  republicans. 

But  while  we  are  investigating  the  question  of  responsibility 
let  us  consider  whether  the  republicans  are  not  morally  responsible 
for  the  growth  of  anarchy.  Anarchy  is  not  indigenous  to  Ameri- 
can soil;  it  is  of  foreign  origin  and  culture.  It  is  the  outgrowth 
of  conditions  which  to  the  anarchists  seem  unchangeable.  Arbi- 
trary power  suppresses  all  God-given  instincts  and  arouses  a 
resentment  that  always  follows  the  disregard  of  natural  justice. 
It  has  been  the  boast  of  our  government  that  it  differed  from 
the  governments  of  Europe  in  that  it  rested  upon  the  consent  of 
the  governed.  Anything  which  tends  to  obliterate  or  lessen  this 
distinction  cannot  but  create  here  the  conditions  out  of  which 
anarchy  grows. 

In  Europe  there  are  classes  separated  by  birth.  Some  are  born 
to  rule,  others  are  born  into  the  aristocracy,  while  the  masses  are 
born  to  serve.  These  artificial  distinctions  naturally  excite  a  hatred 
which,  when  long  suppressed,  bursts  forth  into  hostility  to  the 
government  which  recognizes  and  enforces  these  distinctions.  The 
creation"  of  artificial  distinctions  in  this  country  tends  to  create 
the  same  conditions,  and  the  republican  party  has  done  more  than 
all  other  parties  combined  to  separate  the  people  into  classes.  It 
is  assumed  that  only  the  manufacturers  are  capable  of  deciding  on 
the  tariff  question  and  the  tariff  law  of  1890  was,  according  to 
the  testimony  of  a  United  States  senator,  written  by  the  benefi- 
ciaries of  the  tariff.  It  is  contended  that  only  the  financiers  are 
competent  to  legislate  on  the  financial  question,  and  that  only 
business  men  have  a  real  and  vital  interest  in  good  government. 
Trust  magnates  are  allowed  to  select  the  attorney  general  and  cor- 
porations often  have  a  controlling  influence  in  the  appointments 
of  judges  and  in  the  action  of  United  States  senators. 

The  individual  who  is  driven  into  bankruptcy  by  a  great  monop- 
oly and  then  sees  the  beneficiaries  of  that  monopoly  prominent  in 


374  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

society,  in  politics,  and  in  the  councils  of  the  nation,  is  in  excellent 
condition  to  listen  to  the  theories  of  the  anarchist.  Government 
is  a  great  blessing  when  it  is  administered  with  justice,  but  it  ap- 
pears as  an  unspeakable  evil  to  the  helpless  citizen  who  is  for- 
bidden by  law  to  avenge  his  own  wrongs  and  then  vainly  appeals 
to  the  government  for  protection. 

The  republican  party  is  to-day  engaged  in  an  imperial  policy 
that  will  do  more  than  all  else  combined  to  cultivate  the  anarchistic 
spirit.  Those  who  know  what  imperialism  is  in  the  old  country 
can  imagine  what  it  will  be  in  this  country  when  fully  developed. 
It  means  a  centralization  of  the  government,  followed  by  a 
gradual  change  which  will  give  more  emphasis  to  the  strength 
of  the  government  and  less  to  the  rights  of  the  individual. 
It  also  means  a  lessening  of  the  regard  shown  for  human  life. 
According  to  the  doctrines  of  a  republic,  life  and  liberty  are  price- 
less; under  an  empire  liberty  is  measured  in  dollars  and  cents, 
and  life  is  unimportant  when  it  stands  in  the  way  of  trade.  We 
cannot  wage  wars  of  conquest  in  order  to  help  our  merchants  with- 
out making  men  a  matter  of  merchandise;  we  cannot  give  com- 
mercial reasons  for  the  killing  of  the  Filipinos  without  arousing 
a  discussion  as  to  the  relative  value  of  the  lives  of  different  per- 
sons and  classes,  and  when  that  discussion  is  once  started  we  need 
not  be  surprised  if  some  find  it  difficult  to  distinguish  between 
the  value  of  the  life  of  the  Filipino  and  the  value  of  the  life  of  an 
American,  or  between  the  value  of  the  life  of  an  ordinary  citizen 
and  the  value  of  the  life  of  a  high  official. 

The  sympathy  expressed  for  England  in  her  war  against  the 
republics  of  South  Africa  tends  to  identify  our  government  with 
European  governments  and  to  visit  upon  it  the  condemnation  vis- 
ited upon  governments  resting  upon  brute  force. 

The  suggestion  recently  made  that  we  join  with  the  nations  of 
Europe  in  the  extermination  of  anarchy  looks  toward  a  still  closer 
union  between  the  monarchies  and  aristocracies  of  the  old  world 
and  the  republic  of  the  new  world.  "We  cannot  afford  to  do  any- 
thing which  will  identify  a  government  resting  upon  the  consent 
of  the  governed  with  governments  whose  strength  rests  upon 
enormous  standing  armies  supported  by  taxation  levied  upon  the 
very  people  whom  the  armies  are  intended  to  overawe. 

Legally,  those  are  responsible  for  the  assassination  of  the  presi- 
dent who  committed  the  act  or  advised  it,  but  the  moral  respon- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  375 

sibility  is  far  broader,  and  when  we  find  the  real  sources  of  anarchy 
we  will  find  that  republican  policies  and  republican  practices  have 
contributed  far  more  to  the  conditions  that  produced  a  Czolgosz 
than  anything  urged  or  defended  by  the  democratic  party. 


IS  A  ST011M  BREWING? 

The  president  in  his  message  to  congress  uses  language  which 
indicates  that  he  recognizes  the  possibility  of  a  break  in  the  pros- 
perity of  which  republicans  have  boasted  and  desires  to  decrease 
the  effect  of  the  break  when  it  does  come.  "Moreover,"  he  says, 
"no  law  can  guard  against  the  consequences  of  our  own  folly.  The 
men  who  are  idle  or  credulous,  the  men  who  seek  gains  not  by 
genuine  work  with  head  or  hand,  but  by  gambling  in  any  form, 
are  always  a  source  of  menace  not  only  to  themselves,  but  to  others, 
If  the  business  world  loses  its  head,  it  loses  what  legislation  cannot 
supply." 

There  is  evidence  that  the  business  world  has  to  some  extent 
lost  its  head,  and  that  a  part  of  the  present  prosperity  is  the  result 
of  speculation  which  may  be  better  defined  to  mean  the  spending 
now  of  money  that  must  hereafter  be  repaid  with  interest. 

The  New  York  Sun  not  long  ago  discussed  the  financial  condi- 
tion with  a  tremulousness  in  its  voice.  The  following  is  an  extract 
from  the  Sun's  article: 

We  can  no  more  do  without  banks  and  a  great  volume  of  credit 
money  in  excess  of  the  quantity  of  real  money  than  we  can  do 
without  railroads  and  the  telegraph.  But  the  possibility,  nay,  the 
certainty,  of  financial  whirlwinds  in  which  no  house  is  safe  is  the 
price  that  nature  exacts  for  the  privilege.  Obviously  a  great  share 
of  what  is  called  financial  genius  in  these  days  consists  in  the  ability 
to  discern  these  rising  storms  before  their  fury  rages,  and  if  a 
set  of  maxims  could  be  deduced  giving  scientific  information  on 
the  subject,  as  in  the  case  of  ordinary  tempests,  their  value  would 
be  inestimable.  One  or  two  general  laws  only  can  be  laid  down 
whose  force,  common  sense  and  experience  alike  attest,  namely, 
that  great  financial  trouble  need  not  be  feared  when  the  credit 
superstructure  is  lifted  but  a  little  way  above  the  money  founda- 
tion ;  and  the  converse  of  this  likewise  holds.  Another  law  is  that 
hurricanes  in  the  financial  world  don't  usually  rapidly  succeed 
each  other.  Time  is  needed  for  them  to  mature.  After  a  period 
of  years  has  passed  without  their  occurence,  then  the  business  world 


376  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

in  its  prosperity  has  grown  regardless  of  them,  and  the  idea  per- 
vades the  community  that  riches  can  easily  be  acquired  hy  making 
figures  upon  paper,  then  this  onset  should  most  be  feared. 

There  must  be  a  reasonable  relation  between  money  and  credit 
just  as  there  must  be  a  reasonable  relation  between  a  man's  property 
and  his  debts.  As  the  volume  of  actual  money  is  lessened  in  pro- 
portion to  the  volume  of  credit,  our  financial  system  becomes  less 
stable,  and  disturbances  are  likely  to  be  not  only  more  frequent, 
but  more  destructive.  When  the  bank  is  good  no  one  cares  to 
withdraw  his  money.  The  moment  it  gets  a  little  weak  every  one 
demands  his  money.  The  republican  financial  system  will  be  found 
to  work  better  in  boom  times  than  in  times  of  industrial  depres- 
sion. When  the  gold  standard  is  complete  the  credits  which  are 
nominally  payable  in  any  kind  of  money  will  finally  be  payable 
in  gold  coin,  and  the  supply  of  gold  is  insufficient.  The  republican 
party  is  resting  its  whole  case  on  prosperity,  without  showing  how 
its  policies  have  brought  prosperity  or  can  ensure  it  for  the  future. 
What  will  the  party  do  when  the  threatened  disturbance  comes? 


LAFAYETTE'S  EPITAPH. 

Nearly  sixty  years  ago  S.  S.  Prentiss,  the  famous  southern 
orator,  delivered  an  address  on  Lafayette.  After  pointing  out  the 
great  service  which  Lafayette  had  rendered  to  the  American  col- 
onies, Mr.  Prentiss  said: 

1  The  lisping  infant  will  learn  to  speak  his  venerated  name ;  the 
youth  of  every  country  will  be  taught  to  look  upon  his  career  and  to 
follow  in  his  footsteps.  When  hereafter  a  gallant  people  are  fight- 
ing for  freedom  against  the  oppressor,  and  their  cause  begins  to 
wane  before  the  mercenary  bands  of  tyranny,  then  will  the  name 
of  Lafayette  become  the  watchword  that  will  strike  with  terror  on 
the  tyrant's  ear,  and  nerve  with  redoubled  vigor  the  freeman's  arm. 
At  that  name  many  a  heart  before  unmoved  will  wake  in  the  glori- 
ous cause;  and  many  a  sword  rusting  ingloriously  in  its  scabbard 
will  leap  forth  to  battle.  Lafayette  need  no  mausoleum.  His 
fame  is  mingled  with  the  nation's  history;  his  epitaph  is  engraved 
upon  the  hearts  of  men. 

Is  there  not  some  reason  to  fear  that  Lafayette's  epitaph  has 
become  erased  from  the  hearts  of  men  in  this  country?  When 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  377 

we  are  repudiating  the  principles  which  Lafayette  helped  our  fore- 
fathers to  establish,  when  we  withhold  from  Kruger's  men  that 
sympathy  which  our  forefathers  so  gladly  accepted  from  French- 
fen,  when  we  have  come  to  sneer  at  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
as  a  bit  of  "rhetorical  generalization,"  is  there  any  wonder  that 
Lafayette's  epitaph,  as  described  by  Prentiss,  has  become  some- 
what dim? 

It  is  true,  however,  as  it  was  true  when  Prentiss  said  it,  that  the 
name  of  Lafayette,  as  well  as  the  name  of  Washington  and  of  others 
of  his  time,  serves  as  an  inspiration  to  people  fighting  for  freedom 
against  the  oppressor.  It  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  names  and 
the  deeds  of  these  men  have  served  as  an  inspiration  to  the  South 
Africans  as  well  as  to  other  people  fighting  for  liberty  in  other 
climes.  Is  it  not  somewhat  humiliating  to  be  brought  to  a  realiza- 
tion of  the  fact  that  while  the  deeds  of  our  forefathers  serve  as  an 
inspiration  to  men  who  aspire  to  liberty,  our  own  actions  not  only 
fail  to  give  any  encouragement  to  those  people,  but,  on  the  con- 
trary, have  been  a  hindrance  to  those  who  are  entitled  to  pur  sym- 
pathy ? 

PERRY  BELMONT'S  DEFEAT. 

The  defeat  of  Perry  Belmont  in  a  strong  democratic  district 
ought  to  show  the  eastern  democrats  the  folly  of  nominating  for  na- 
tional positions  men  who  are  known  to  antagonize  democratic  prin- 
ciples. In  1896  Mi.  Belmont  was  a  conspicuous  supporter  of  the 
Palmer-Buckner  movement  which  was  organized  in  the  interest  of 
the  republican  ticket.  In  1900  he  was  one  of  those  who  gave  nomi- 
nal allegiance  to  the  democratic  party,  not  with  any  desire  to  ad- 
vance democratic  principles,  but  for  the  purpose  of  betraying  the 
party  again  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  That  he  should  ask  for  the 
honor  of  a  seat  in  congress  where  he  could  misrepresent  the  democ- 
racy of  his  state  shows  how  little  respect  he  has  for  the  interests 
of  his  would-be  constituents.  His  defeat  was  well  merited  and 
ought  to  serve  as  a  lesson  to  those  who  assume  that  the  voters  of  the 
party  will  vote  for  any  one  who  may  happen  to  be  nominated,  even 
though  he  be  a  republican  masquerading  as  a  democrat. 

Mr.  Belmont  has  given  no  evidence  of  a  change  of  heart  since 
1896,  and  until  he  does  he  ought  not  to  expect  the  confidence  of 
those  who  were  loyal  then.  When  he  does  undergo  a  change  of 


378  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

heart  he  will  be  so  ashamed  of  his  past  conduct  that  he  will  be 
content  with  the  position  of  a  private  in  the  ranks  until  he  can 
prove  his  repentance  by  his  works. 


A  CHAXGE  OF  BASE. 

Although  we  may  deplore  the  lowering  of  ideals  that  has  taken 
place  in  the  Outlook,  we  must  give  its  editor  credit  for  recog- 
nizing the  inconsistency  between  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
and  the  Philippine  policy  of  the  republican  administration.  In 
a  recent  editorial  he  speaks  of  the  principle  that  "all  governments 
exist  for  the  benefit  of  the  governed."  One  does  not  have  to  be 
learned  in  the  science  of  government  nor  far  advanced  in  the 
knowledge  of  language  to  recognize  the  wide  difference  between 
the  principle  above  stated  and  the  self-evident  truth  that  "govern- 
ments derive  their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed." 
The  principle  stated  in  the  Outlook  is  one  that  has  been  asserted  by 
every  king  and  potentate  who  claimed  to  rule  by  right  divine.  A 
man  would  be  a  monster  who  would  defend  a  government  upon  any 
other  theory,  but  while  this  is  the  theory  usually  put  forward  in  de- 
fense of  monarchies  and  aristocracies,  the  all  important  ques- 
tion is,  Who  shall  decide  what  is  for  the  "benefit  of  the  governed"  ? 
Shall  this  question  be  decided  by  a  king,  or  by  a  few,  or  shall  it 
be  decided  by  the  people  themselves?  The  trouble  with  one  who 
rules  by  arbitrary  power  is  that  he  insists  upon  deciding  what 
government  is  best  for  his  subjects,  and  then  he  insists  upon  shoot- 
ing them  if  they  do  not  agree  with  him  in  regard  to  the  merits 
of  the  government  which  he  proposes,  and  under  which  they  must 
live.  The  whole  difference  between  a  government  resting  upon 
force  and  a  government  resting  upon  the  consent  of  the  governed 
is  involved  in  the  difference  between  the  Outlook's  idea  of  govern- 
ment and  the  theory  of  government  set  forth  in  the  Declaration 
of  Independence. 

Jefferson  defended  the  view  embodied  in  the  Declaration  of  In- 
dependence. In  his  first  inaugural  message  he  said:  "Sometimes 
it  is  said  that  man  cannot  be  trusted  with  the  government  of  him- 
self. Can  he  then  be  trusted  with  the  government  of  others,  or 
have  we  found  angels  in  the  form  of  kings  to  govern  him  ?"  Lin- 
coln announced  the  same  doctrine  when  he  said  that  God  never 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  379 

made  a  man  good  enough  to  govern  another  man  without  the 
other  man's  consent. 

It  behooves  us  to  analyze  the  principles  which  underlie  imperial- 
istic policies,  and  when  those  principles  are  understood  they  will 
be  found  to  be  not  new  ones  just  discovered,  but  the  old  and  blood- 
stained ones,  trampled  under  the  feet  of  the  soldiers  who  enlisted 
under  the  banner  of  Washington. 


THE  NICAKAGUAN  CANAL. 

The  Nicaraguan  canal  bill  passed  the  house  January  9  by  a 
vote  of  308  to  2.  Although  but  two  votes  were  cast  against  the 
measure,  it  was  evident  that  there  was  considerable  opposition 
because  of  the  various  amendments  proposed  during  the  bill's 
consideration.  For  instance,  the  proposition  that  the  president 
be  empowered,  if,  in  his  judgment  it  seemed  best,  to  purchase  and 
complete  the  Panama  route,  providing  the  same  could  be  pur- 
chased for  $40,000,000,  received  102  votes,  170  votes  being  cast 
in  the  negative.  Mr.  Cannon,  of  Illinois,  led  the  fight  in  favor 
of  the  Panama  route,  or  rather,  against  the  bill  itself;  and  yet, 
on  the  final  proposition  as  to  the  passage  of  the  bill,  Mr.  Fletcher, 
a  rebulican  member  from  Minnesota,  and  Mr.  Lassiter,  a  demo- 
cratic member  from  Virginia,  were  the  only  members  voting 
against  the  measure.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  senate  will,  with- 
out unnecessary  delay,  pass  the  Nicaraguan  bill.  It  is  important 
that  the  construction  work  on  this  great  enterprise  be  commenced 
as  soon  as  possible.  It  is  true  that  the  eleventh  hour  offer  of 
the  Panama  canal  people  may  persuade  some  to  the  notion  that, 
"all  things  considered,"  the  Panama  route  would  be  the  better 
one ;  but  those  who  have  no  particular  reason  aside  from  the  ques- 
tion of  public  interest  for  preferring  one  route  over  the  other, 
will  find  it  difficult  to  escape  the  conclusion  that,  however  disin- 
terested the  offer  of  the  Panama  people  may  be  with  respect  to 
the  primary  question  of  the  canal's  prompt  construction,  there 
are  some  interests  that  would  take  advantage  of  this  late-day  offer 
to  delay  the  building  of  any  canal  across  the  isthmus.  Senator 
Hanna,  for  instance,  is,  by  the  Chicago  Tribune,  credited  with 
being  "an  outspoken  opponent  of  the  Nicaraguan  canal  bill." 


380  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

The  Tribune  says  that  "Mr.  Hanna  spoke  without  reserve,"  and 
in  explaining  Mr.  Hanna's  position,  the  Tribune  says: 

Senator  Hanna  is  not  so  much  an  advocate  of  the  Panama  idea 
as  he  is  an  opponent  of  the  Xicaraguan  route,  and  that  he  opposes 
only  because  he  thinks  it  is  not  the  best  one  geographically  or 
financially.  Mr.  Hanna,  indeed,  is  inclined  to  believe  that  the 
old  Darien  route  is  the  one  that  offers  the  best  advantage,  all 
things  considered. 

About  a  year  ago  he  had  his  attention  called  to  the  reports  made 
upon  this  route  at  various  times  and  talked  with  one  of  the  en- 
gineers, who  found  in  an  out  of  the  way  place  some  maps  and 
drawings  which  he  brought  to  the  attention  of  President  Mc- 
Kinley,  and  through  him  to  Senator  Hanna.  It  is  probable  that 
the  fact  of  the  Darien  route,  which  seems  to  have  been  entirely 
lost  upon  the  present  generation  of  congressmen,  may  be  submitted 
to  the  senate  committee  during  its  consideration  of  the  canal 
question  and  to  the  senate  when  the  bill  comes  before  that  body. 

This  would  seem  to  be  a  fairly  accurate  description  of  the 
attitude  of  those  who  oppose  the  Xicaraguan  canal.  For  instance, 
according  to  the  Tribune,  Senator  Hanna  is  "not  so  much  an 
advocate  of  the  Panama  route  as  he  is  an  oponent  of  the 
Xicaraguan  route";  and,  indeed,  according  to  the  Tribune,  "Mr. 
Hanna  is  inclined  to  believe  that  the  old  Darien  route  is  the  one 
that  offers  the  best  advantage,  all  things  considered." 

What  is  the  fair  interpretation  of  this  position?  It  would 
seem  to  be  that  Mr.  Hanna  and  the  men  who  stand  with  him  in 
opposing  the  Xicaraguan  route  are  not  so  much  agitated  because 
of  geographical  considerations,  or  because  of  economical  questions, 
as  they  are  by  the  determination  that  no  canal  shall  be  con- 
structed across  the  isthmus  until  their  individual  or  political  in- 
terest in  the  canal  becomes  greater  than  it  now  is.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  the  American  people  are  very  generally  in  favor  of  an 
isthmian  canal.  Had  the  Panama  route  been  agreed  upon  by  the 
commission,  undoubtedly  that  route  would  now  be  in  high  popular 
favor.  But  the  people  seem  to  have  settled  upon  the  Xicaraguan 
route,  not  because  of  any  particular  prejudice  in  favor  of  that 
route,  but  because  the  Xioaraguan  plan  seems  to  give  the  best 
promise  of  an  early  completion  of  the  much  desired  result. 

Many  powerful  influences  are  at  work,  not  particularly  against 
the  Xicaraguan  route,  but  against  any  isthmian  canal.  One  pre- 
text and  another  will  be  resorted  to  in  order  to  destroy  the  pri- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  381 

raary  object.  In  the  prompt  passage  of  the  Nicaraguan  bill,  the 
house  of  representatives  has  set  a  good  example  for  the  senate. 
It  is  also  gratifying  that  no  partisanship  entered  into  the  battle 
for  an  isthmian  canal  in  the  house.  Let  us  hope  that  the  senate 
will  speedily  dispose  of  this  question.  The  specious  pleading  of 
men  who  insist  that  they  are  not  so  much  advocates  of  the 
Panama  route  as  they  are  opponents  of  the  Nicaraguan  route, 
or  that  "indeed"  they  are  inclined  to  believe  that  the  old  Darien 
route  is  the  one  that  "offers  the  best  advantage,  all  things  con- 
sidered"— let  us  hope  that  the  specious  pleading  of  these  men 
will  be  ignored  in  the  very  general  demand  that  the  congress  pave 
the  way  for  a  prompt  beginning  of  the  enterprise  in  which  the 
American  people  have  so  deep  an  interest. 


THAT  POPULIST  INFLUENCE. 

The  re-organizers  are  always  complaining  of  the  influence 
which  the  populists  have  exerted  upon  the  democratic  party  in 
recent  years.  Whenever  a  re-organizer  wants  to  find  fault  with 
the  democratic  platform  or  any  part  of  it,  he  denounces  it  as 
populistic.  The  fact  is,  most  of  the  things  which  are  complained 
of  as  populistic  were  advocated  by  the  democrats  before  the  popu- 
list party  was  organized,  and  that  which  the  democrats  did  bor- 
row from  the  populist  party  was  indorsed  by  practically  all  of 
the  democratic  party  prior  to  the  Chicago  convention.  Take,  for 
instance,  the  question  of  free  silver.  The  democratic  party  in 
congress  had  for  years  been  contending  for  the  very  thing  which 
the  Chicago  platform  indorsed.  Time  and  again  before  there 
was  a  populist  party  nearly  all  of  the  democrats  in  both  house 
and  senate  had  voted  for  the  financial  system  indorsed  by  the 
platform.  They  had  voted  for  free  coinage  and  for  unlimited 
coinage;  they  had  voted  for  a  bill  opening  the  mints  at  the  ratio 
of  16  to  1  without  waiting  for  the  aid  or  consent  of  any  other 
nation,  and  no  national  democratic  platform  had  ever  announced 
a  different  doctrine.  The  Chicago  convention  opposed  the  national 
bank  of  issue,  but  in  so  doing  it  was  entirely  consistent  with  the 
party  record.  .  . 

The  Chicago  platform  indorsed  the  income  tax.  The  principle 
of  the  income  tax  had  been  indorsed  in  previous  populist  plat- 


382  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

forms,  but  it  had  also  been  embodied  in  the  revenue  measure 
passed  by  congress  in  1894.  Comparatively  few  of  the  democrats 
in  the  house  and  senate  voted  against  the  income  tax,  Senator 
Hill,  of  New  York,  being  the  most  rabid  of  its  opponents.  While 
it  was  known  to  the  democrats  in  congress  that  Mr.  Cleveland  did 
not  favor  an  individual  income  tax,  he  allowed  the  bill  contain- 
ing this  tax  to  become  a  law  without  his  signature.  The  opposi- 
tion to  the  income  tax  plank  has  not  been  directed  so  much  to 
the  principle  involved  as  to  the  wording  of  the  platform,  and 
the  wording  of  the  platform  was  not  suggested  by  anything  the 
populist  party  had  ever  said  or  done. 

Government  by  injunction  was  also  denounced  in  the  Chicago 
platform,  but  it  will  be  remembered  that  the  United  States  senate 
had  already  passed,  practically  without  opposition,  the  bill  which 
the  democratic  platform  commended. 

These  are  the  propositions  usually  referred  to  as  populistic, 
and  yet,  while  the  populist  and  democratic  party  agree  on  these 
propositions,  they  are  thoroughly  democratic,  and  no  democrat 
can  consistently  object  to  them  merely  because  the  populist  party 
also  favors  them. 

But  why  should  men  who  voted  the  republican  ticket  find  fault 
with  populists  who  supported  the  democratic  ticket?  Should  men 
who  supported  the  Palmer  and  Buckner  ticket  feel  aggrieved 
because  the  populists  were  more  anxious  than  they  to  secure  the 
reforms  for  which  the  democratic  party  had  been  working?  If 
men  are  to  be  judged  by  their  actions  rather  than  by  their  words, 
the  populists  are  much  more  in  sympathy  with  democratic  prin- 
ciples than  those  who  spend  their  time  criticising  and  carping  at 
the  populists. 


WHY  NOT  STATE  OF  JEFFERSON? 

Why  is  there  so  much  delay  in  admitting  the  territories?  The 
republicans  have  in  two  campaigns  pledged  themselves  unequivo- 
cally to  the  admission  of  the  territories,  and  yet  they  seem  more  in- 
terested in  ship  subsidy  bills  and  other  measures  that  they  dared  not 
specifically  indorse,  than  in  the  measures  which  they  so  strongly 
advocated. 

Arizona,   New   Mexico   and   Oklahoma,   including   the  Indian 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  383 

Territory,  are  ready  for  admission.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
controversy  over  single  or  double  statehood  will  not  prevent  the 
admission  of  Oklahoma.  If  Oklahoma  and  the  Indian  Territory 
cannot  agree  upon  a  name,  why  not  drop  "Indian  Territory"  and 
"Oklahoma"  and  substitute  the  name  of  "Jefferson"  for  both? 
The  state  of  Indiana  preserves  the  Indian  name,  and  the  name  of 
Oklahoma  can  be  preserved  in  some  local  way.  The  land  embraced 
in  the  Indian  and  Oklahoma  territories  is  the  last  of  the  Louisiana 
Purchase  to  be  incorporated  into  a  state.  It  would  be  a  fitting 
tribute  to  Jefferson  to  thus  give  his  name  to  a  part  of  the  territory 
purchased  under  his  administration.  It  would  probably  require 
a  year  for  the  necessary  formalities,  so  that  the  admission  of  the 
state  and  the  adoption  of  the  name  would  be  a  fitting  celebration 
of  the  one  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  purchase  of  the  great 
trans-Mississippi  region. 

Washington's  name  has  already  been  given  to  a  state,  and  Jef- 
ferson stands  next  to  Washington  among  the  presidents  and  beside 
him  in  services  rendered  to  the  American  people. 


MANIFEST  DESTINY. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  of  the  books  published  by  Houghton, 
Mifflin  &  Co.,  is  Theodore  Eoosevelt's  book  on  Thomas  Benton. 
It  appeared  in  the  Statesman's  Series  and  was  copyrighted  in 
1886.  In  this  book  the  president  of  the  United  States  gave  spe- 
cial attention  to  a  phrase  which  was  much  used  just  before  the 
civil  war,  but  not  much  used  afterwards  until  it  was  employed 
as  an  excuse  for  the  exploitation  of  the  Philippines.  On  page 
40,  Mr.  Koosevelt  said: 

Among  such  people  Benton's  views  and  habits  of  thought  be- 
came more  markedly  western  and  ultra-American  than  ever,  es- 
pecially in  regard  to  our  encroachments  upon  the  territory  of 
neighboring  powers.  The  general  feeling  in  the  West  upon  this 
last  subject  afterwards  crystallized  into  what  became  known  as 
the  "Manifest  Destiny"  idea,  which,  reduced  to  its  simplest  terms, 
was:  that  it  was  our  manifest  destiny  to  swallow  up  the  land  of 
all  adjoining  nations  who  were  too  weak  to  withstand  us;  a  theory 
that  forthwith  obtained  immense  popularity  among  all  states- 
men of  easy  international  morality. 


384  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

At  that  time  the  author  did  not  like  the  doctrine  of  "manifest 
destiny";  his  conscience  would  not  permit  him  to  indorse  a 
policy  of  swallowing  up  even  adjoining  nations  merely  because 
they  were  too  weak  to  withstand  us.  How  could  he  have  con- 
demned the  doctrine  more  severely  than  he  did  when  he  suggested 
that  it  became  immensely  popular  among  "all  statesmen  of  easy 
international  morality"  ? 

It  will  be  seen  that  it  contained  a  moral  question  as  well  as  a 
political  one.  If  it  was  then  immoral  to  swallow  up  the  land  of 
adjoining  nations  who  were  too  weak  to  withstand  us,  is  it  now 
moral  to  cross  an  ocean  seven  thousand  miles  wide  and  swallow  up 
the  land  of  nations  that  do  not  adjoin  us,  merely  because  they  were 
too  weak  to  withstand  us? 

On  another  page  he  spoke  of  this  method  of  securing  land  by 
conquest  in  even  harsher  terms.  He  said:  "This  belligerent,  or, 
more  properly  speaking,  piratical  way  of  looking  at  neighboring 
territory,  was  very  characteristic  of  the  West,  and  was  at  the 
root  of  the  doctrine  of  'manifest  destiny.' "  "Manifest  destiny" 
at  that  time  was  a  belligerent  and  piratical  doctrine;  can  it  be 
Christian  and  benevolent  now?  On  page  266  of  Mr.  Roosevelt's 
book  the  author  very  clearly  outlined  the  difference  between  the 
American  method  of  expansion  and  the  European  policy  of  im- 
perialism. He  said: 

Of  course  no  one  would  wish  to  see  these  or  any  other  settled 
communities  now  added  to  our  domain  by  force;  we  want  no  un- 
willing citizens  to  enter  our  union;  the  time  to  have  taken  the 
lands  was  before  settlers  came  into  them.  European  nations  war 
for  the  possession  of  thickly  settled  districts  which,  if  conquered, 
will  for  centuries  remain  alien  and  hostile  to  the  conquerors;  we, 
wiser  in  our  generation,  have  seized  the  waste  solitude  that  lay 
near  us,  the  limitless  forests  and  never  ending  plains,  and  the 
valleys  of  the  great,  lonely  rivers;  and  have  thrust  our  own  sons 
into  them  to  take  possession ;  and  a  score  of  years  after  each  con- 
quest we  see  the  conquered  land  teeming  with  a  people  that  is 
one  with  ourselves. 

He  recognized  that  it  was  contrary  to  the  principles  of  a  re- 
public to  incorporate  unwilling  citizens  into  the  union;  he  recog- 
nized that  people  taken  by  conquest  would  "for  centuries  remain 
alien  and  hostile  to  the  conquerors."  If  he  knew  this  then  how 
could  he  so  forget  his  knowledge  of  history  as  to  think  that 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  385 

the  Filipinos  would  soon  be  friends  to  their  conquerors?  Are  we 
less  "wise"  now  than  when  he  wrote? 

Attention  is  called  to  the  change  that  has  come  over  the  presi- 
dent merely  as  an  illustration  of  the  fact  that  republican  policies 
to-day  are  in  violation  of  history  and  of  human  nature,  as  well 
as  in  violation  of  the  doctrines  promulgated  by  the  very  same  re- 
publicans before  the  thirst  for  empire  overcame  them? 

When  Mr.  Roosevelt  discussed  the  subject  of  imperialism  seven- 
teen years  ago  he  used  American  language  to  defend  American 
principles ;  when  Mr.  Roosevelt  speaks  as  a  republican  president  of 
the  United  States  exercising  in  the  Philippines  the  same  power 
that  the  king  of  England  exercises  in  India,  he  uses  European  lan- 
guage to  defend  European  principles. 

The  doctrine  of  "manifest  destiny"  is  merely  a  piece  of  hypocrisy 
used  to  excuse  a  policy  which  cannot  be  defended  on  principle.  It 
would  be  better  and  more  candid  for  the  republican  leaders  to  de- 
fend imperialism  as  the  habitual  drunkard  defends  his  intoxica- 
tion, by  saying  that  the  appetite  is  stronger  than  the  will. 


TRUSTS  RETARD  PROGRESS. 

The  above  heading  was  suggested  by  a  travelling  man  (and  THE 
COMMONER  entertains  a  high  opinion  of  the  energy  and  intelligence 
of  travelling  men)  who  gave  some  illustrations  in  support  of  the 
proposition.  He  called  attention  to  a  certain  manufacturer  who, 
while  he  was  engaged  in  an  independent  industry,  made  great  im- 
provements in  the  product  of  his  factory,  and  thus  gave  his  wares 
a  high  standing  among  dealers.  When  he  joined  with  others  in 
forming  a  trust  for  the  control  of  that  industry,  improvement 
stopped.  After  awhile  this  particular  factory  was  .shut  down,  and 
the  trust  no  longer  felt  it  necessary  to  improve  the  quality  of  the 
goods.  Meanwhile,  the  trust  raised  the  price  of  the  goods  about 
33  per  cent.,  thus  lessening  the  demand  for  them  and  reducing  the 
labor  necessary  to  produce  them.  After  awhile  some  independent 
factories  started  up,  and,  spurred  on  by  the  necessity  which  com- 
petition creates,  they  began  improving  the  quality  of  their  product. 
The  trust  reduced  prices  more  than  25  per  cent,  in  order  to  kill 
off  the  new  enterprises.  What  the  result  will  be  remains  to  be 
seen.  Whether  the  independent  factories  will  be  able  to  survive 


386  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

depends  partly  upon  the  financial  ability  of  the  owners  of  the  in* 
dependent  enterprises  and  partly  upon  their  power  to  withstand 
temptation.  After  the  trust  has  shown  its  power  to  destroy  the 
profits  of  the  independent  enterprises  it  will  probably  offer  a  price 
sufficiently  large  to  induce  the  individual  manufacturers  to  give 
up  the  contest  and  pocket  the  profits.  The  trust  can  afford  to  do 
this,  for  by  raising  prices  it  can  soon  collect  from  the  whole  people 
all  that  it  paid  to  destroy  competition  and  afterwards  it  will  have 
the  field  to  itself  until  some  new  competitor  has  to  be  bought  off. 
The  point  made  by  the  travelling  man  is  a  good  one,  namely, 
that  competition  results  in  the  constant  improvement  of  the  prod- 
uct, while  monopoly  makes  this  constant  improvement  unneces- 
sary. This  is  a  fact  to  be  considered  by  those  who  regard  trusts 
as  an  economic  development.  They  are  not  an  economic  develop- 
ment. A  monopoly  in  private  hands  is  not  an  economic  develop- 
ment, for  economy  in  production  is  more  than  offset  by  the  de- 
terioration in  quality  which  follows  when  the  manufacturer  is  re- 
lieved from  the  stimulus  of  competition  and  only  concerned  about 
the  amount  of  profit  he  can  get  out  of  the  product. 


A  EEMAKKABLE  DOCUMENT. 

The  trial  of  Corporal  Kreider  at  Manila  brings  to  light  the  ex- 
istence of  a  document  which  conveys  a  lesson  more  important  than 
the  one  drawn  from  it  by  republican  editors.  Young  Kreider  was 
Med  for  treason  because  his  name  appeared  on  the  following  ap- 
peal circulated  among  the  American  soldiers : 

To  Whom  It  May  Concern:  Dear  Fellow  Countrymen:  After 
many  months  among  the  Filipino  people,  studying  their  costumes 
and  characters,  we,  the  undersigned,  have  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  time  has  arrived  for  us  to  break  the  silence  and  let  you 
know  the  real  truth,  so  that  you  will  see  the  folly  of  continuation 
of  fighting  these  people  who  are  defending  their  country  against 
the  cruel  American  invasion  in  the  same  manner  in  which  our 
forefathers  did  against  England  in  those  glorious  days  of  our 
grand  and  noble  liberator,  General  George  Washington. 

Since  the  day  we  were  led  by  our  conscience  and  presented  our- 
selves to  the  Philippine  authorities  we  have  received  the  best  of 
treatment,  and  we  are  enjoying  a  life  of  luxury  without  having 
to  put  our  lives  in  danger  as  do  you,  who  still  remain  in  the  Amer- 
ican ranks  fighting  for  an  unjust  cause,  which  sooner  or  later  must 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  387 

surely  prove  disastrous,  as  it  did  to  the  Spanish,  notwithstanding 
that  they  knew  the  country  and  customs  of  the  people  better  than 
the  Americans  do. 

For  above-mentioned  reasons  and  also  that  the  war  may  soon 
end,  we  ask  the  men  of  the  American  army  stationed  in  these 
islands  to  present  themselves  to  the  Philippine  authorities  as  we 
did,  thereby  showing  yourselves  to  be  true  Americans  upholding 
the  policy  of  Washington  and  the  Monroe  doctrine  against  the 
ambitious  policy  of  President  McKinley,  who  for  two  years  has 
carried  on  this  cruel  war,  spilling  the  innocent  bloo'd  of  thousands 
of  American  soldiers,  and  with  what  object?  To  fill  the  pockets 
of  Mark  Hanna  and  several  other  American  capitalists  who  have 
been  for  years,  and  are  now,  ruling  America  to-day,  or,  in  other 
words,  changing  your  blood  for  gold  and  robbing  many  a  loving 
mother  or  wife  of  son  or  husband,  thereby  making  many  a  once 
happy  home  sad  and  miserable. 

Before  we  close  let  us  tell  you  that  near  every  town  there  are 
always  stationed  forces  of  Filipino  troops  to  whom,  should  you  so 
desire,  you  can  present  yourselves  with  or  without  your  rifle,  and 
to  avoid  danger  it  is  best  to  hide  it  in  a  secure  place,  and  after  you 
have  presented  yourself  inform  the  Filipino  officer  or  chief  of  the 
guerrillas  and  they  will  recover  it  and  pay  you  some  money  in 
return. 

With  this  we  conclude,  wishing  you  the  best  of  .fortune.     We 
remain  yours  most  sincerely, 
HARRY  HORAL  ALMAN,  Company  K. 
JOHN"  BLAKE,  Trumpeter,  Company  B,  Twenty-eighth  U.  S. 

Infantry. 

FRANK  L.  CLARK,  Company  F,  Twenty-first  U.  S.  Infantry. 
J.  THOMAS  KREIDER,  Corporal,  Thirty-eighth  U.  S.  Volun- 

teers. 
CHARLES    BUCHANAN;,    Company    B,    Twenty-eighth  U.    S. 

Volunteers. 

HARRY  RICHTER,  Sixth  U.  S.  Artillery. 
CHARLES  WRIGHT,  Hospital  Corps. 
FITZHUGH  SMITH. 
JOHN  RYAN",  Fourth  Regiment. 

Kreider  s  defense  was  that  the  document  was  drawn  by  Filipinos 
and  that  the  Americans  who  signed  it  did  so  under  duress.  A 
military  commission  found  Kreider  guilty  of  treason  and  sentenced 
him  to  life  imprisonment.  General  Chaff ee  refused  to  approve 
the  findings  of  the  military  court  and  released  the  accused  with  a 
reprimand.  The  general  thus  admonished  the  offender: 

While  no  treasonable  intent  or  overt  act  is  established  against 
the  accused  by  competent  evidence,  it,  however,  remains  to  be  re- 


388  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

marked  that  it  is  the  duty  of  every  American  soldier  to  face  im- 
pending danger  of  death  rather  than  sign  a  treasonable  proclama- 
tion, even  if  it  is  prepared,  as  was  the  one  in  this  case,  by  the 
enemy.  Nor  should  he  do  any  other  act  that  might  have  even  a 
seeming  of  giving  the  enemy  encouragement.  The  true  soldier 
not  only  takes  the  risks  of  battle,  but  all  other  risks  of  life  grow- 
ing out  of  any  and  all  incidents  of  war,  and  accepts  the  chance 
of  life  or  death  rather  than  do  aught  to  injure  his  country's  cause 
or  dishonor  the  uniform  he  wears. 

General  Chaffee  is  sound  in  his  argument.  No  amount  of  duress 
could  justify  an  American  soldier  in  signing  such  a  document. 
It  has  been  said  that  no  one  need  be  a  slave  who  knows  how  to 
die,  and  so,  it  may  be  added,  no  one  can  be  compelled  to  sign  a 
treasonable  appeal  until  he  becomes  afraid  of  death.  The  soldiers 
in  the  Philippines  went  there  voluntarily  and  in  going  they  as- 
sumed the  risks  which  attend  military  service.  The  sentiments 
expressed  by  General  Chaffee  will  be  generally  commended;  but 
there  is  another  phase  of  the  subject  which  ought  not  to  escape 
attention.  Who  wrote  the  remarkable  document  which  the  Amer- 
ican prisoners  were  forced  to  sign?  The  Filipinos?  Dare  the 
republicans  admit  it  ?  It  is  charitable  to  exonerate  the  Americans, 
but  how  will  the  republicans  reconcile  that  document  with  the 
theory  that  the  Filipinos  are  savages  ?  The  authors  of  that  appeal 
seem  to  know  something  of  American  history;  they  are  evidently 
acquainted  with  our  struggle  for  independence,  and  they  recognize 
that  our  present  Philippine  policy  is  utterly  inconsistent  with  our 
traditions  and  our  principles  of  government.  It  ought  to  make 
republican  leaders  blush  to  think  that  the  "inferior  people"  who 
are,  according  to  the  president,  a  thousand  years  behind  us,  under- 
stand imperialism  better  than  these  same  republican  leaders  under- 
stand imperialism,  but  pretend  ignorance? 

How  long  will  honest  and  conscientious  republicans  close  their 
eyes  to  the  moral  and  political  degradation  involved  in  imperialism  ? 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  389 


XIX. 

SHORTER  EDITORIALS. 

INTERESTING  DISCRIMINATION.— A  commission  should  be  ap- 
pointed to  definitely  fix  the  amount  of  wealth  one  must  possess 
before  being  classed  as  a  kleptomaniac  instead  of  a  thief.  The 
same  commission  could  also  fix  the  amount  which  a  man  must 
steal  before  becoming  a  Napoleon  of  finance  instead  of  being  a 
common  embezzler.  There  is  now  so  much  leeway  afforded  that 
the  public  is  often  led  to  grievously  wrong  a  man  by  calling  him 
a  thief  or  an  embezzler  when  in  truth  he  is  either  a  kleptomaniac 
or  a  financier.  This  is  because  of  not  having  a  definite  amount 
fixed  from  which  to  measure  judgment.  This  appears  to  be  one 
of  the  crying  needs  of  the  hour. 

EXTRAVAGANCE  INCREASING. — Some  of  the  republicans  are  be- 
coming alarmed  at  the  extravagance  of  the  present  congress.  The 
appropriations  for  this  session  will  not  be  far  from  eight  hundred 
millions.  Deducting  about  one  hundred  and  fifteen  millions  de- 
rived from  postal  receipts,  it  still  leaves  nearly  seven  hundred 
millions  to  be  raised  by  taxation. 

Senator  Hale  was  recently  led  to  remark :  "The  tide,  immensely 
swollen  heretofore,  is  more  swollen  and  more  turbid."  "And  s.till 
rising,"  interjected  Senator  Spooner.  "Rising  rapidly,"  added 
Senator  Allison. 

Why  does  not  the  administration  call  a  halt?  Because  the  tax 
eaters  control  the  republican  organization  and  their  appetite  grows 
with  the  feeding. 

SECRETARY  GAGE'S  PROUD  BOAST. — In  a  statement  prepared  for 
the  Chicago  Record-Herald,  Secretary  Gage  says :  "There  has  been 
a  very  material  increase  in  the  volume  of  money  in  circulation 
since  March  1,  1897,  as  well  as  in  the  amount  per  capita.  The 
volume  of  money  on  that  date,  outside  of  the  treasury,  was 
$1,675,694,953,  and  the  amount  per  capita  was  $23.14.  On  the 
1st  of  December  last  the  amount  of  money  outside  of  the  treasury 
was  $2,250,256,230,  and  the  amount  per  capita  was  $28.73.  The 
increase  in  amount,  therefore,  was  $574,561,277,  and  the  increase 
per  capita  was  $5.59."  Is  it  not  strange  to  hear  the  single  gold 


390  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

standard  champion  boasting  of  an  increase  in  the  volume  of  money, 
when  we  remember  that  in  189G  he  insisted  that  we  had  all  the 
money  we  needed? 


OUR  ALLIES. — If  the  re-organizers  would  spend  more  time  op- 
posing republican  policies  and  less  time  denouncing  the  populists 
they  would  serve  the  cause  better.  The  populists  came  to  the 
help  of  the  democratic  party  when  the  re-organizers  abandoned 
it  and  the  latter  are  not  in  a  position  to  boast  of  superior  attach- 
ment to  democratic  principles.  What  is  true  of  the  populists  is 
also  true  of  the  silver  republicans,  who  have  for  four  years  vied 
with  the  democrats  in  their  efforts  to  advance  the  doctrines  set 
forth  in  the  democratic  platform.  It  will  be  an  unfortunate  day 
for  the  democracy  if  the  bolting  element  on  the  outside  or  the 
corporation  element  on  the  inside  is  able  to  so  alter  the  party 
creed  as  to  make  it  less  acceptable  to  our  populist  and  silver  re- 
publican allies. 


FREEDOM  OF  THE  PRESS. — The  deportation  of  Editor  Rice  from 
Manila  because  of  his  criticism  of  American  officials  ought  to  give 
the  American  people  some  idea  of  what  is  to  be  expected  under 
colonialism.  Free  speech  is  not  consistent  with  military  rule  or 
carpet-bag  government.  Men  who  exercise  authority  without 
responsibility  to  those  whom  they  govern  cannot  tolerate  criticism, 
and  any  suggestion  of  malfeasance  or  mis-feasance  becomes  incendi- 
ary and  dangerous.  Human  frailty  makes  public  officials  liable 
enough  to  error  even  when  restrained  by  a  free  press  and  when  that 
restraint  is  taken  away  the  people  have  no  protection  whatever. 
There  is  a  love  of  justice  to  be  found  in  every  human  heart,  and 
when  justice  is  denied,  those  who  are  responsible  for  the  denial 
never  think  it  wise  to  have  the  matter  discussed.  Benevolent  as- 
similation is  too  tender  a  plant  to  withstand  the  frost  of  criticism. 


MATTER  FOR  INVESTIGATION. — The  orbits  of  the  planets  are  so 
well  known  to  astronomers  that  they  can  note  the  slightest  devi- 
ation. Whenever  a  planet  acts  queerly  they  know  that  it  is  due 
to  the  influence  of  some  heretofore  unknown  heavenly  body  and 
they  proceed  to  search  for  that  body. 

Democratic  principles  are  so  well  understood  and  so  easily  ap- 
plied that  the  conduct  of  a  faithful  democratic  representative  can 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  391 

be  easily  predicted.  Whenever,  therefore,  a  democratic  senator, 
a  representative,  or  a  state  legislator  acts  queerly,  it  is  well  to 
investigate  at  once  and  find  out  what  earthly  body  is  exerting  an 
influence  over  him. 

He  may  be  paying  for  some  favor  received  or  expected,  or  he 
may  be  in  close  proximity  to  some  corporation.  The  eccentrici- 
ties of  a  representative  can  always  be  explained  when  the  facts 
are  known. 


THE  VALUE  OF  INFLUENCE. — A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER 
asks  for  a  word  on  the  value  of  influence.  Influence  may  be  di- 
vided into  two  kinds,  good  and  bad,  and  all  know  that  both  are 
potent.  When  we  keep  our  children  out  of  bad  company  we  recog- 
nize that  evil  associations  exert  a  corrupting  influence  upon  all 
who  submit  themselves  to  such  associations.  We  may  not  empha- 
size as  much  as  we  should  the  value  of  good  influence,  but  we 
have  scripture  as  well  as  observation  to  support  the  doctrine  that 
there  is  nothing  more  powerful  than  the  influence  of  an  upright 
life.  "Let  your  light  so  shine  before  men  that  they  may  see  your 
good  works,"  etc.,  is  proof  of  the  good  that  can  be  done  by  ex- 
ample. We  should  be  as  careful  to  give  others  the  benefit  of  a 
good  influence  as  to  secure  a  benefit  from  theirs.  The  life  of  each 
person  is  so  interwoven  with  the  life  of  others  that  no  one  can 
be  sure  that  any  act  will  be  without  an  influence,  hence  the  im- 
portance of  striving  to  make  that  influence  helpful. 

PLANETARY  DISTURBANCES. — They  talk  of  attempting  communi- 
cation with  Mars  as  if  it  were  something  new.  The  fact  is,  the 
republican  leaders  have  for  years  been  under  the  influence  of  the 
planets.  Mr.  Hanna  has  been  Jupiter's  special  representative  and 
has  ruled  on  republican  Olympus  with  as  much  authority  as  was 
ever  shown  by  "The  Thunderer." 

The  various  rings  which  encircle  the  republican  organization 
prove  clearly  that  the  party's  star  has  long  been  in  close  conjunc- 
tion with  Saturn;  the  hidden  forces  which  are  pushing  the  ship 
subsidy  bill  would  excuse  the  suspicion  that  Neptune  is  at  work 
with  his  trident ;  and  what  power  but  the  blood-star  Mars  could  have 
led  the  party  of  Lincoln  into  wars  waged  for  conquest  and  the  pur- 
chase of  trade? 

What  we  need  is  not  wireless  telegraphy  between  the  earth  and 


392  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

the  stars,  but  some  means  of  insulating  the  republican  party  against 
planetary  currents. 

DOING  JUSTICE  TO  ADMIRAL  SCHLEY. — Representative  John  S. 
Williams  of  Mississippi  has  introduced  a  resolution  providing  for 
the  appointment  of  a  committee  to  investigate  the  charges  made  by 
Historian  Maclay  that  Crowninshield,  Sampson  and  other  naval 
officers  read  the  proof-sheets  of  Maclay's  bitter  attack  on  Admiral 
Schley.  It  cannot  be  doubted  that  Mr.  Williams,  who  is  one  of  the 
forceful  members  of  the  house^  will  push  his  resolution  with  all 
possible  vigor,  and  yet  it  is  not  likely  that  republicans  will  permit 
the  adoption  of  any  such  resolution  introduced  by  a  democrat. 
They  will  perhaps  prefer  to  adopt  a  similar  resolution  introduced 
by  a  republican.  At  all  events,  the  American  people  will  expect  the 
charge  that  Admiral  Schley  has  been  the  victim  of  a  conspiracy, 
to  be  thoroughly  investigated.  There  seems,  also.,  to  be  a  dis- 
position in  congress  to  prevent  the  creation  of  the  grade  of  vice 
admiral  unless  provision  is  made  for  conferring  that  grade  upon 
Admiral  Schley  and  restoring  him  to  active  service.  It  required 
a  long  time  for  some  of  the  politicians  in  the  republican  party  to 
realize  that  injustice  was  being  done  Admiral  Schley,  but  it  is  now 
probable  in  spite  of  the  court  of  inquiry's  decision  that  many  of 
them  will  compete  strongly  with  democratic  members  in  the  effort 
to  do  justice  to  Schley. 


AFRAID  OF  SILVER. — A  Georgia  paper  is  responsible  for  the 
circulation  of  a  story  to  the  effect  that  Mr.  Bryan,  when  in  the 
army,  refused  to  accept  two  dollars  and  a  half  in  silver  as  change, 
and  demanded  paper.  The  statement  is  not  true,  for  he  prefers 
to  carry  a  few  dollars  in  silver  rather  than  in  paper,  but  the  fact 
that  he  or  any  one  else  does  not  care  to  carry  many  dollars  in  silver 
is  no  argument  against  silver.  Because  one  prefers  to  carry  one, 
two,  three  or  four  dollars  in  silver  to  a  like  value  in  paper  is  no 
reason  why  he  should  prefer  twenty-five  or  fifty  dollars  in  silver 
to  a  like  value  in  paper.  Neither  gold  nor  silver  is  convenient 
to  carry  in  large  quantities ;  that  is  why  silver  certificates  and  gold 
certificates  are  issued.  An  advocate  of  the  gold  standard  would 
rather  carry  a  thousand  dollar  silver  certificate  than  a  thousand 
dollars  in  gold.  More  people  carry  and  use  silver  every  day  than 
carry  or  use  gold,  and  the  most  rabid  gold  bug  would  hardly  refuse 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  393 

the  payment  of  a  debt  because  it  was  tendered  in  silver.  The 
complaint  which  republicans  make  about  the  weight  of  silver  re- 
calls a  story  told  on  a  Boston  man  who  was  arguing  against  the 
white  metal.  He  said:  "No  one  likes  to  carry  silver,  it  is  too 
heavy.  Now  suppose  I  gave  my  wife  fifty  dollars  to  go  down  town 
and  buy  something,  say  a  spool  of  thread  or  any  article  of  small 
value,  and  the  clerk  gave  her  back  forty-nine  dollars  and  the  change 
in  silver,  she  wouldn't  want  to  carry  that  much,"  and  turning  to 
his  wife  for  confirmation  he  inquired,  "Would  you  ?"  She  replied, 
"Oh,  my,  if  I  could  only  get  fifty  dollars  to  spend  I  would  be  will- 
ing to  carry  the  change  in  any  kind  of  money."  If  any  gold  bug 
doubts  the  truth  of  this  story  let  him  try  the  experiment  on  his 
wife. 


TORTURE  INDEFENSIBLE. — The  burning  of  another  negro,  this 
time  in  Kansas,  again  calls  attention  to  the  tendency  to  return  to 
the  cruelties  and  torture  of  former  times.  When  a  similar  incident 
occurred  a  few  weeks  ago  in  Colorado,  republican  papers  were  quick 
to  connect  the  occurrence  with  a  fusion  majority  in  the  state.  If 
retaliation  were  proper,  democratic  papers  might  refer  to  the 
republican  majority  rolled  up  in  Kansas  last  November,  but  the 
subject  is  too  serious  to  be  made  a  theme  for  partisan  controversy. 
Such  atrocities  are  inexcusable,  no  matter  when  or  where  they  are 
practiced.  Lynch  law  must  be  condemned  on  general  principles 
because  it  temporarily  suspends  government  and  its  enforcement 
amid  excitement  and  without  a  careful  investigation  of  the  evidence 
often  leads  to  the  doing  of  great  injustice. 

The  fact  that  good  people,  aroused  to  frenzy  by  a  horrible  crime, 
sometimes  take  the  law  into  their  own  hands,  is  not  a  justification, 
but  simply  shows  that  strong  feeling  will  occasionally  overmaster 
the  reason  of  the  best  of  men.  Before  lynching  can  be  defended 
some  tribunal  must  be  authorized  to  decide  when,  under  what  cir- 
cumstances and  upon  what  evidence  individual  revenge  should  be 
substituted  for  the  ordinary  methods  of  administering  justice. 
But  even  if  lynching  could  be  defended  the  addition  of  torture  is 
inexcusable.  It  is  an  indulgence  of  passion,  more  hurtful  to  those 
who  are  guilty  of  it  than  to  their  victim.  Instead  of  lessening 
crime,  burning  is  apt  to  increase  it  by  accustoming  the  people  to 
cruelty  and  by  lessening  their  respect  for  human  life.  Even  those 
who  in  Kansas  and  elsewhere  have  joined  in  the  mad  cry  for  blood 


394  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

and  exulted  in  the  agonies  of  a  human  heing  will,  in  calm  and  dis- 
passionate moments,  condemn  the  act  and  deplore  the  weakness 
which  temporarily  condoned  it. 

An  unanswerable  argument  against  such  a  form  of  punishment 
is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  no  legislative  body  in  Christendom 
would  deliberately  provide  for  burning  as  a  penalty  for  any  crime. 

CAUGHT  HIM  NAPPING. — The  partisan  prejudice  of  some  men 
was  fittingly  illustrated  by  an  incident  which  occurred  in  a  western 
city  during  the  sad  week  of  the  presidential  obsequies.  While  the 
campaign  of  1900  was  in  progress  democrats  had  great  sport  read- 
ing a  speech  delivered  by  Abraham  Lincoln  in  1858  and  intimating 
that  it  was  a  portion  of  a  speech  delivered  by  Mr.  Bryan.  Ke- 
publicans  readily  fell  into  the  trap  and  denounced  it  as  "hogwash," 
"copperheadism,"  etc.  An  ex-congressman  stood  on  a  prominent 
corner  of  —  a  few  days  ago  and  denounced  the  democrats,  and  es- 
pecially Mr.  Bryan,  for  what  he  termed  "appeals  to  class  prejudice." 
He  asserted  that  these  appeals  unsettled  the  minds  of  people  and 
made  them  discontented  with  their  lot,  and  further  declared  that 
the  language  used  by  democratic  orators  in  discussing/  political 
questions  was  indirectly,  if  not  directly,  responsible  for  the  assassi- 
nation of  President  McKinley.  A  young  man  standing  by  coincided 
with  this  view,  and  to  prove  the  truth  of  the  assertion  made  by  the 
ex-congressman  read  the  following: 

"Human  rights  and  privileges  must  not  be  forgotten  in  the  mad 
race  for  wealth.  The  government  of  the  people  must  be  by  the 
people,  and  not  by  a  few  of  the  people.  Power,  it  must  be  remem- 
bered, which  is  secured  by  oppression  and  usurpation,  or  by  any 
form  of  injustice,  is  soon  overthrown." 

"That,"  asserted  the  young  man,  "is  the  kind  of  talk  that  is 
continually  stirring  up  trouble  between  the  different  elements  of 
our  population.  It  is  the  doctrine  of  discontent." 

"That's  right !"  asserted  the  ex-congressman.  "It  is  intended 
to  make  the  poor  hate  the  rich.  It  is  intended  to  make  people  be- 
lieve that  our  republic  is  rapidly  becoming  an  empire.  It  is " 

"Oh,  you  ought  to  know  better  than  to  talk  that  way  about  this 
speech,"  interrupted  the  young  man.  "That  is  an  extract  from  a 
speech  delivered  by  William  McKinley  only  a  few  years  ago." 

The  republican  ex-congressman  looked  dazed,  then  hastily 
changed  the  subject. 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 


XX. 

EDITOKIAL  PARAGRAPHS. 

Perhaps  "malevolent  dissimulation"  is  the  term  meant. 

Blood-bought  commerce  may  be  profitable  for  a  time,  but  the 
average  will  show  a  preponderance  of  red  ink  entries. 

Of  course  it  would  not  do  to  send  the  Liberty  Bell  on  a  visit 
to  the  Philippines.  It  might  stir  the  natives  to  "anarchy." 

The  attention  of  Signer  Marconi  is  called  to  the  fact  that  the 
trusts  have  been  sending  wireless  messages  to  congress  for  several 
years. 

F.  P.  Dunne  (Mr.  Dooley)  has  paraphrased  an  old  epigram. 
He  says:  "Ye  can  lade  a  man  up  to  the  University  but  ye  can't 
make  him  think." 


It  is  a  mistake  to  assume  that  people  in  the  Philippines  or  in 
South  Africa  can  be  benefited  by  a  carpet-bag  government  held 
in  authority  by  armies. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  believe  that  Paul  Kruger's  name  will  be 
remembered  long  after  the  world  has  forgotten  why  General 
Roberts  was  made  an  earl. 

The  cost  of  good  literature  is  insignificant  when  compared  with 
its  value  in  moulding  character,  and  a  good  newspaper  is  the  least 
expensive  form  of  literature. 


The  floral  tributes  which  greeted  Mr.  Quay  on  his  re-election 
to  the  Senate  recall  the  fact  that  flowers,  like  showers,  fall  alike 
upon  the  just  and  the  unjust. 

A  large  number  of  congressmen  who  excuse  their  conduct  on 
the  ground  that  they  are  filled  with  missionary  zeal  are  filled 
only  with  commissionary  zeal. 


396  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Rousseau  says,  "There  is  in  liberty  as  in  innocence  and  virtue, 
a  satisfaction  one  only  feels  in  their  enjoyment  and  a  pleasure 
which  can  cease  only  when  they  are  lost." 

In  the  estimation  of  the  gentlemen  who  so  ably  managed  the 
republican  campaign  there  are  no  bad  trusts,  unless  it  be  one  or 
two  that  failed  to  mail  checks  in  time  to  be  available. 


The  fever  of  speculation  on  Wall  Street  is  wearing  on  Mr.  Gage. 
He  does  not  know  whether  he  will  have  to  sell  bonds  to  keep  the 
market  from  breaking,  or  buy  bonds  to  keep  the  speculators  from 
going  broke. 


When  one  reads  the  eulogies  delivered  over  Senators  and  mem- 
bers of  the  House  of  Representatives  he  understands  why  it  is 
that  those  who  are  elected  to  either  branch  of  Congress  want  to 
stay  there  until  they  die. 

The  democratic  country  press  is  the  reflex  of  democratic  thought, 
and  democrats  must  support  the  country  of  democratic  papers  if 
democratic  victories  are  to  be  won.  A  well  supported  press  is 
more  than  half  the  battle. 


Some  predict  that  Texas  will  rival  Pennsylvania  as  a  producer 
of  oil ;  it  is  to  be  hoped,  however,  that  she  will  not  rival  Pennsyl- 
vania in  her  political  methods.  We  can  use  more  oil,  but  we  do 
not  need  any  more  Pennsylvania  politics. 

The  bullet  of  an  anarchist  cannot  overthrow  our  government, 
neither  can  it  settle  public  questions.  Our  government  rests  se- 
curely upon  the  good  will  of  the  people,  and  public  questions  will 
be  settled  by  the  intelligence  and  patriotism  of  the  people. 

Speaking  of  steadfastness,  it  is  related  of  an  old  servant  of 
Andrew  Jackson,  who  survived  his  master  several  years  and  acted 
as  a  guard  at  the  Hermitage,  that  when  asked  whether  he  thought 
Jackson  went  to  heaven  replied:  "If  he  sot  his  head  that  way, 
he  did." 


As  we  have  been  giving  protection  to  manufacturers  and  trust- 
ing to  their  generosity  to  give  to  their  employes  a  fair  share  of 
the  blessings  conferred  by  the  government,  why  not  give  subsidies 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  397 

to  the  farmers  who  export  cotton,  meat  and  breadstuffs  and  trust 
them  to  divide  with  the  ship-owners? 


As  Mr.  Watterson  was  seizing  the  reins  and  warning  "the  fools" 
to  get  out  of  the  way  the  St.  Paul  Globe,  itself  a  bolter  in  1896, 
quietly  pulled  his  coat  tail  and  suggested  to  him  that  the  pas- 
sengers might  feel  a  little  nervous  if  he  tried  to  drive  so  soon 
after  his  attempt  to  hold  up  the  coach. 

In  view  of  the  prominent  part  taken  by  Justices  Brown  and 
White  in  changing  our  form  of  government,  a  reader  of  THE 
CoimoxER  suggests  that  the  national  colors  should  be  changed  to 
Eed,  White,  and  Brown.  But  as  Justice  Gray  also  joined  in  the 
decision,  why  not  make  them  Gray,  Brown,  and  White  ? 


If  the  Congressmen  who  are  constantly  endeavoring  to  raise  the 
rate  of  postage  on  second-class  mail  matter  would  give  a  little 
attention  to  the  compensation  paid  railroads  for  carrying  the  mails, 
they  would  find  it  possible  to  make  such  a  reduction  in  expenses 
as  to  render  an  increase  in  postage  rates  unnecessary. 


In  forming  an  opinion  as  to  the  capacity  of  the  Filipinos  for 
self-government,  General  Chaffee,  the  military  governor,  is  some- 
what embarrassed  by  the  fact  that  he  cannot  decide  for  the  Filipinos 
without  deciding  against  the  interests  of  the  carpet-bag  officials 
and  exploiters  who  find  good  picking  in  "our  new  possessions." 

A  test  has  at  last  been  discovered  for  determining  when  a  paper 
is  under  corporate  influence.  If  the  editor  becomes  violently  agi- 
tated when  any  reference  is  made  to  the  common  people  the 
chances  are  sixteen  to  one  that  his  paper  is  a  defender  of  every 
scheme  whereby  the  organized  few  seek  to  obtain  an  advantage  over 
the  masses  of  the  people. 


Don't  bet  on  elections.  Aside  from  the  moral  principle  involved 
it  is  foolish  to  gamble  on  a  subject  where  your  enthusiasm  impairs 
your  judgment.  If  your  party  wins  there  is  joy  enough  in  the 
victory.  If  your  party  loses,  why  give  your  opponents  the  double 
happiness  of  a  party  triumph  and  your  money  besides?  Instead 
of  risking  your  earnings  on  a  wager  contribute  what  you  can  to 
the  campaign  fund. 


398  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

A  Kansas  paper  expresses  a  violent  dislike  for  the  name  "Com- 
moner," and  says  that  it  is  "a  vile  word  and  totally  un-American." 
The  uncommon  people  seem  to  be  more  worried  about  the  name 
than  the  common  people.  The  agitation  of  those  who  consider 
themselves  outside  of  the  appellation  reminds  one  of  the  definition 
of  the  onion  which  describes  it  as  the  vegetable  which  makes  the 
person  sick  who  does  not  eat  it. 

The  money  already  expended  in  a  vain  effort  to  subdue  the 
Filipinos  and  grab  their  lands  would  have  made  tillable  more 
land  in  western  America  than  there  is  in  the  whole  Philippine 
group.  This  would  have  created  a  larger  market  at  home,  pro- 
vided homes  for  millions  of  people  and  made  unnecessary  the  sac- 
rifice of  3,500  American  lives  on  the  altar  of  "commerce."  The 
Philippine  game  is  not  worth  the  candle. 


In  response  to  an  invitation  from  Tammany  to  submit  a  senti- 
ment to  be  read  on  the  4th  of  July,  Mr.  Bryan  suggested  the  fol- 
lowing : 

"Liberty  is  not  safe  without  a  written  constitution,  and  a  consti- 
tution to  be  of  value  must  be  strong  enough  to  control  every 
public  servant  and  broad  enough  to  include  within  its  protection 
every  person  who  acknowledges  allegiance  to  the  flag." 


The  advocates  of  municipal  ownership  note  with  pleasure  the 
result  of  the  election  for  members  of  the  city  council  of  London. 
A  majority  of  the  members  of  the  new  council  favor  the  municipal 
ownership  of  municipal  franchises.  When  the  largest  city  in  the 
world,  especially  in  England,  can  undertake  this  reform  the  repub- 
licans will  have  to  speak  respectfully  of  the  democrats  and  populists, 
who  object  to  bestowing  valuable  franchises  upon  private  corpora- 
tions in  this  country. 


Conscience  is  a  creature  of  education.  Many  a  man  who  would 
recoil  in  horror  at  the  suggestion  that  he  waylay  and  rob  a  single 
individual  at  the  muzzle  of  a  revolver,  does  not  hesitate  to  waylay 
and  rob  a  community  at  the  muzzle  of  an  unjust  law  secured 
through  corrupt  influences  for  selfish  purposes.  And  men  who  do 
this  sort  of  thing  sometimes  give  largely  to  public  charities  and 
receive  credit  for  generosity.  The  public  conscience  needs  to  be 
awakened  and  properly  schooled. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  399 

The  Manila  Times,  referring  to  the  plan  of  campaign  in 
Samar,  says  that  Lubkan's  army  will  be  "rounded  up  for  ex- 
termination." It  also  asserted  that  "Samar  island  will  be  made  a 
desert."  If  the  policy  of  exterminating  the  army  and  making  a 
desert  of  the  island  is  carried  out  everywhere,  what  will  our  ex- 
ploiters do?  White  men  can't  work  in  the  Philippines.  Some  of 
the  Filipinos  ought  to  be  left  to  act  as  day  laborers  or  we  shall 
be  unable  to  "develop"  the  islands. 


The  trusts  generally  issue  two  kinds  of  stock — preferred  and  com- 
mon. The  preferred  stock  is  intended  for  the  preferred  people 
and  the  common  stock  for  the  common  people.  The  preferred 
stock  has  a  fixed  dividend,  which  must  be  paid  before  any  dividend 
can  be  declared  on  the  common  stock;  the  common  stock,  there- 
fore, is  subject  to  the  greater  fluctuation.  It  might  with  propriety 
be  called  lamb's  food,  because  it  is  most  popular  with  young  sheep 
before  they  have  experienced  the  first  shearing. 


Japan  looks  upon  the  United  States  as  its  best  friend.  It  was 
the  United  States  that  brought  Japan  into  contact  with  the  civil- 
ized world.  How?  Not  with  bullets  and  swords;  not  with  rapid- 
fire  guns  and  high-priced  commissions  living  at  the  expense  of  a 
people  impoverished  by  300  years  of  fighting  for  liberty.  It  was 
accomplished  by  kindness,  by  force  of  example  and  by  recognition 
of  inalienable  rights.  But  when  Japan  was  reclaimed  from  in- 
dustrial seclusion  there  was  an  absence  of  congressmen  anxious 
to  confer  "blessings"  in  return  for  the  privilege  of  gobbling  up 
all  of  the  rich  concessions  or  holding  the  fat  offices. 


Secretary  Gage  would  take  a  rosy  view  of  the  future  if  his  hopes 
did  not  depend  upon  so  many  ifs.  He  says,  "If  a  trade  war  does 
not  come  up,  and  if  European  nations  do  not  engage  in  a  tariff 
fight,  and  if  no  untoward  accident  happens,  and  if  war  does  not 
become  universal,  I  expect  to  see  an  era  of  prosperity  long  con- 
tinued." 

If  Mr.  Gage  was  a  different  kind  of  a  man  and  if  he  favored  a 
different  kind  of  a  financial  system,  and  if  he  then  had  the  power 
to  pr.t  his  policy  into  practice  he  might  aid  in  making  prosperity 
general  and  permanen^  but  the  "ifs"  are  in  the  way. 


4OO  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

It  must  be  mortifying  to  honest  and  well-meaning  republicans 
to  find  that  some  of  the  more  partisan  members  of  that  party 
wagged  their  malicious  tongues  or  employed  their  venomous  pens 
in  abuse  of  democrats  while  the  President's  funeral  was  in  progress 
and  while  all  patriotic  hearts  joined  in  the  mourning.  It  was  not 
an  inspiring  spectacle  to  see  these  debased  representatives — or  rather 
misrepresentatives — of  the  republican  party  sucking  political 
comfort  out  of  the  wounds  of  the  chief  executive.  Fortunately, 
however,  the  number  of  such  was  small  compared  with  the  number 
of  those  who  recognized  that  the  calamity  was  national  and  that 
the  tributes  of  respect  were  non-partisan  in  their  character. 

The  democratic  party  stands  for  definite,  positive  principles,  and 
the  Kansas  City  platform  is  the  party  creed  until  another  national 
platform  is  written.  Those  who  argue  from  the  standpoint  of  ex- 
pediency seem  willing  to  sacrifice  any  principle  or  endorse  any 
policy  if  they  can  thereby  win.  But  there  is  no  way  of  judging 
what  is  expedient ;  we  can  only  do  what  we  believe  to  be  right  and 
accept  the  consequences.  We  may  deserve  to  win,  and  yet  lose, 
but  it  still  remains  that  to  deserve  to  win  is  the  surest  road  to 
success.  If  any  one  tells  you  that  success  can  be  won  by  a  sur- 
render of  democratic  principles,  just  remind  him  of  the  campaign 
of  1894  when  we  lost  both  our  principles  and  our  candidates. 


The  monopolists  sometimes  try  to  defend  trusts  by  claiming  that 
they  are  identical  in  principle  with  the  labor  organization.  There 
is  this  difference,  however,  between  the  two  kinds  of  organization 
which  ought  to  be  apparent  to  every  one.  Labor  organizations  have 
not  yet  secured  for  their  members  more  than  a  fair  compensation 
for  work  done — and  in  many  branches  of  industry  they  have  not 
secured  what  is  fair,  while  many  of  the  trust  magnates  have  within 
a  few  years  amassed  fabulous  fortunes.  When  labor  organizations 
reach  the  point  where  the  wage-earners  are  able  to  spend  their 
summers  in  the  north,  their  winters  in  the  south,  and  the  autumn 
months  in  Europe,  it  will  be  time  enough  to  class  such  organizations 
with  the  trusts. 


A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  asks  for  an  explanation  of  the 
term  "government  by  injunction."  It  is  a  phrase  used  to  describe 
a  process  of  the  court  which  has  been  more  and  more  frequently 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  401 

abused  of  late,  whereby  the  court,  at  the  instance  of  a  corpora- 
tion, enjoins  the  striking  employes  from  doing  some  act  described 
in  the  order.  The  object  of  the  writ  is  to  suspend  the  right  of 
trial  by  jury  and  give  the  judge  an  opportunity  to  punish  for 
contempt  of  court  in  case  the  order  is  violated.  The  democratic 
platforms  of  1896  and  1900  condemned  government  by  injunction. 
If  the  court  prohibits  the  doing  of  an  act  already  unlawful  the 
order  is  unnecessary  because  those  who  violate  the  criminal  law 
can  be  prosecuted  in  the  ordinary  way.  If  the  court  prohibits  the 
doing  of  an  act  which  is  not  prohibited  by  law,  then  it  is  guilty 
of  creating  law,  which  is  not  the  province  of  the  court. 


402  The  Commoner  Condensed. 


XXI. 

WHETHER  COMMON  OR  NOT. 

Articles  in  this  department  are  written  by  Will  M.  Maupin. 
I  AIN'T  TH'  LITTLEST  GIRL  NO  MORE. 

My  papa  called  me  sweetheart  till  it  came, 

An'  jus'  played  with  me  nearly  all  th'  time; 
But  now  he's  jus'  forgot  my  baby  name 

'Cause  there's  another  baby  now,  an'  I'm 
Told  'at  I  mustn't  run  an'  sing  an'  play 

'Cause  it  might  wake  it  up  an'  make  it  cry. 
An'  'stead  of  bein'  petted  ev'ry  day 

I'm  tol'  I'm  such  a  bother  when  I'm  nigh, 
That's  why  I'm  feelin'  so  drefful  poor — 
I  ain't  th'  littlest  girl  no  more. 

'Fore  baby  came  my  papa  used  t'  say 

'At  I  wus  jus'  th'  sweetest  girl  in  town; 
An'  'at  he'd  ruther  sing  an'  romp  an'  play 

Wif  me  'an  any  little  girl  aroun'. 
An'  he  would  sing  me  sleepy  songs  at  night 

An'  tuck  me  in  my  little  cradle  bed ; 
But  'at  wus  all  before  he  caught  a  sight 

Of  'at  new  baby's  little  fuzzy  head. 
An'  now  I's  feelin'  so  mighty  poor — 
I  ain't  th'  littlest  girl  no  more. 

It's  so  drefful  hard  for  a  girl  like  me 

'At  ain't  no  bigger  'an  a  pint  o'  sand 
'T  have  t'  stan'  aroun'  t'  wait  an'  see 

A  baby  gettin'  pats  from  mamma's  hand. 
I  can't  see  why  they  wanted  'nother  one 

While  I  wus  here  an'  jus'  a-wishin'  I 
Could  see  my  papa  so  'at  I  could  run 

An'  s'prise  him  till  he  had  to  say,  "0,  my !" 
But  baby  come  an'  I's  drefful  sore — 
I  ain't  th'  littlest  girl  no  more. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  403 

TWO  SEATS. 

He  gave  his  gold  with  lavish  hand 
And  spread  his  fame  throughout  the  land. 
He  builded  here  and  builded  there, 
And  as  he  wrought  things  passing  fair 

His  face  with  conscious  pride  did  glow. 
Then,  when  at  last  his  time  had  come 
And  he  had  gone  to  his  long  home, 
He  stepped  within  and  proudly  said  : 
"Of  course  I  shall  be  quickly  led 

To  the  best  seat  in  the  front  row." 

St.  Peter  smiled  and  shook  his  head, 
And  to  the  new  arrival  said : 
"We  manage  this  place  on  a  plan 
That  may  seem  rather  strange  to  man, 

But  'tis  a  plan  we  know  is  right." 
Then  leading  him  to  second  place, 
St.  Peter  smiled  and  turned  his  face. 
"Who  has  first  place  ?"  the  proud  man  cried. 
St.  Peter  turned  and  quick  replied: 

"A  widow — and  she  gave  a  mite." 


WRITING  TO  SANTA  GLAUS. 

With  infinite  care  and  many  a  pause 
She's  writing  a  letter  to  Santa  Glaus. 
Her  pink  cheeks  are  dimpled,  her  brown  eyes  shine, 

Her  fingers  are  guiding  the  pen  aright; 
And  a  wish  she  writes  in  every  line 

That  must  go  by  post  in  the  fire  to-night, 
For  the  note  that  is  signed  with  baby's  name 
Will  haste  away  on  the  dancing  flame. 
Postage  is  free 

To  girls  and  boys 
Who  send  their  notes 
To  Land  o'  Toys. 


404  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

She's  making  a  curve  for  a  waxen  doll, 
And  a  big,  black  blot  for  a  parasol. 
She  knows  that  old  Santa  will  understand 

Each  mark  she  is  making  upon  the  sheet; 
And  she  changes  her  pen  from  hand  to  hand, 

While  over  her  cheek  chase  the  dimples  sweet. 
Writing  to  Santa — God  grant  he  gives 
An  answer  to  every  sweet  tot  that  lives. 
Over  the  snow 

Without  a  pause 

The  sweet  notes  go 

To  Santa  Glaus. 

And  Santa  awaits  in  his  north  retreat 
For  the  postman's  knock  and  the  missives  sweet. 
And  he  smiles  and  chuckles  the  while  he  reads 
The  marvelous  writing  of  boys  and  girls — 
Quaint  and  curious  are  the  blotted  screeds 

Of  dashes  and  dots,  and  of  quirks  and  curls. 
But  all  are  as  plain  as  your  A,  B,  C's 
To  Santa  who  reads  with  the  utmost  ease, 
For  baby  marks 
In  polar  glint 
To  Santa  Glaus 
Are  plain  as  print. 


A  BOYISH  NIGHTMARE. 

When  the  load  of  life  is  heavy  and  I  bend  beneath  its  weight ; 
When  I  think  my  luck  has  left  me,  and  I  mourn  and  rail  at  fate ; 
When  I  long  for  days  of  boyhood,  for  the  days  when  life  was  gay — 
As  I  picture  it  in  fancy,  now  my  hair  is  tinged  with  gray — 
It  is  then  a  mem'ry  rises  till  I  fully  realize 
That  e'en  in  the  days  of  boyhood  clouds  oft  hid  the  azure  skies ; 
For  what  woe  e'er  comes  to  manhood  that  is  half  as  hard  to  bear 
As  those  cut-down  pants  of  father's  that  my  mother  made  me  wear  ? 

I  can  see  them  yet,  in  fancy,  always  short,  with  ample  slack 
That  would  puzzle  as  to  whether  I  was  gone  or  coming  back; 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  405 

Built  on  plans  of  architecture  that  were  certainly  unique, 

With  the  nap  well  brushed  and  dusted  till  the  cloth  was  thin  and 

sleek. 

And  when  manhood's  cares  beset  me  I  recall  those  days  of  yore, 
Full  of  second-hand  apparel  and  a  heart  with  anguish  sore — 
For  no  matter  what  my  sorrows,  none  as  great  can  ever  be 
As  those  cut-down  pants  of  father's  that  my  mother  made  for  me. 

Stocks  and  bonds  may  lose  their  value;  markets  wobble  till  they 

burst ; 
But  a  moment's  thought  convinces  that  long  since  I  passed  the 

worst 

Of  life's  trials  and  afflictions,  so  I  smile  and  try  again, 
Knowing  that  the  "now"  is  better  than  the  mournful  days  of  "then." 
For  the  man  that  strives  the  hardest  never  gets  the  ridicule 
That  was  heaped  upon  me  when  I  wore  those  awful  pants  to  school. 
So  I  grin  and  bear  the  burdens,  and  am  thankful  as  can  be 
That  no  cut-down  pants  of  father's  will  again  be  put  on  me. 


MAN,  POOE  MAN. 

Trusts  in  cradles  and  bottles  and  milk, 
Trusts  in  wool  and  in  cotton; 

Trusts  in  needles  and  pins  and  threads — 
Cursed  by  trusts  when  begotten. 

Trusts  in  headgear  and  clothing  and  shoes, 
Trusts  in  physic  and  lighting ; 

Trusts  in  everything  he  must  eat — 
Life  is  a  strenuous  fighting. 

Taxed  by  the  trusts  while  a  babe  in  arms, 
Taxed  late,  early  and  often ; 

Taxed  on  the  comforts  of  youth  and  age — 
Taxed  at  last  in  his  coffin. 

Taxed  on  the  marble  that  marks  his  rest 
And  tells  the  world  "Hie  Jacet"; 

This  will  explain  why  a  man  don't  need 
A  shroud  that  has  a  pocket. 


406  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

IF  OL'  HICK'KY  WUS  ALIVE. 

I  see  Nick  Eidgeley's  grandson  is  a-cuttin'  quite  a  swell 
Down  at  th'  seat  o'  government,  an'  makin'  free  t'  tell 
What  he  knows  'bout  finances,  an'  what  he  thinks  is  best 
F'r  t'  keep  our  circulation  a-workin'  without  rest. 
Says  he  thinks  like  his  grandpa,  Nick  Biddle's  right-hand  man, 
A  bank  o'  th'  United  States  is  jus'  th'  proper  plan ; 
An'  that  he'd  institoot  it  an'  he'd  warrant  it  to  thrive — 
But  I  bet  he  couldn't  do  it  if  OF  Hick'ry  wus  alive. 

They've  got  the  people  locoed  with  their  system  o'  finance. 
The  banks  git  all  th'  money  and  they  never  miss  a  chance. 
They  buy  some  bonds  an'  put  'em  in  our  Uncle  Sammy's  vault, 
An'  th'  int'rest  keeps  a-comin'  with  na'ry  hitch  or  halt. 
Then  th'  banks  git  notes  upon  'em,  which  notes  are  always  lent 
T'  'commodate  th'  people — at  th'  rate  o*  ten  per  cent. 
Th'  banks  git  double  int'rest,  an'  law-makers  all  connive — 
But  I  bet  they  couldn't  do  it  if  01'  Hick'ry  wus  alive. 

They  tax  us  till  our  money  is  piled  up  in  Washington, 
An'  Gage,  he  tells  th'  papers  that  some  action  must  be  done. 
Then  he  loans  th'  banks  th'  money  an'  no  int'rest  he'll  assess, 
But  th'  people  pay  ten  f'r  it — which,  of  course,  relieves  distress. 
When  th'  people  git  th'  money  from  th'  banks  they  straightaway 
Hunt  up  th'  tax  collector  an'  once  more  their  taxes  pay. 
It's  a  never  endin'  circle,  goin'  'round  from  year  t'  year — 
But  I  bet  'twould  soon  be  busted  if  01'  Hick'ry  wus  here. 


THE  HOUSEHOLD  PHYSICIAN. 

It  tickles  me  almost  t'  death  t'  see  th'  doctors  fight, 
Each  one  declarin'  t'other's  wrong  an'  only  him  is  right ; 
When  allypath  an'  homypath  forever  disagree, 
Exceptin'  when  they  j'ine  t'  fight  'gainst  ostyopathe. 
Th'  allypath  will  dope  his  sick  th'  pharmacopy  through ; 
Th'  homypath  will  jim  along  with  numbers  1  and  2, 
Th'  ostypath  will  knead  y'r  frame  an'  loosen  evYv  bone, 
An'  then  th'  Scientis'  declares  you're  saved  by  faith  alone. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  407 

An'  some  folks  listen  to  th'  talk  each  school  has  got  t'  make, 
An'  dope  themselves  with  pi'zen  drugs  f  r  ev'ry  pain  an'  ache. 
They  choose  a  school  o'  medicine  an'  help  along  th'  fuss, 
Each  one  a  gulpin'  physic  down  an'  growin'  wuss  an'  wuss. 
It  tickles  me  t'  hear  'em  talk,  an'  hear  'em  argify, 
An'  see  'em  pay  th'  doctor  bills  that  figger  mighty  high. 
Th'  remedies  my  mother  made  are  good  enough  f'r  me — 
Some  goosegrease  on  a  flannel  rag  an'  lots  o'  boneset  tea. 

In  spring  when  feelin'  torpid  an'  my  liver's  out  o'  plumb, 
Malary  in  my  system  an'  each  j'int  a-feelin'  numb; 
When  blood  is  out  o'  kelter  an'  each  bone  begins  t'  ache, 
I  fall  back  on  th'  remedies  my  mother  used  t'  make. 
She  didn't  call  no  doctors  in  t'  feed  her  folks  on  pills 
An'  feel  their  pulse  while  lookin'  wise,  an'  sendin'  in  big  bills. 
She  kept  us  all  a-feelin'  fine  an'  well  as  we  could  be 
With  goosegrease  on  a  flannel  rag  and  quarts  o'  fennel  tea. 

Th'  trouble  with  most  men  to-day  is  each  has  got  a  fad, 
Each  boastin'  of  an  ailment  that  our  fathers  never  had. 
Appendycetus  is  th'  talk,  bacilly's  all  th'  rage ; 
Th'  men  who  have  diskivered  germs  are  heroes  of  th'  age. 
But  I'm  content  with  old-time  ways,  an'  you  kin  bet  y'r  life 
No  modern  doctor  ever  gets  t'  carve  me  with  his  knife. 
I'll  just  keep  doctorin'  myself,  while  doctors  disagree, 
With  goosegrease  on  a  flannel  rag  and  quarts  o'  sass'frass  tea. 


A  LITTLE  FABLE. 

A  Benevolent  Assimilation  walking  along  the  Public  Highway 
met  a  Deep  Longing  mournfully  wending  its  Way. 

"How  now  !"  exclaimed  the  Benevolent  Assimilation.  "Why  this 
Pensive  air  ?" 

"Alas,  I  have  in  my  Possession  something  I  treasure  Highly, 
but  which  I  am  in  Danger  of  Losing." 

"What  can  it  Be  ?"  asked  the  Benevolent  Assimilation. 

"It  is  my  Eight  to  Live." 

Thereupon  the  Benevolent  Assimilation  seized  the  Deep  Longing 
by  the  Nape  of  the  Neck  and  felled  it  to  the  Ground. 


408  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

"Why  am  I  thus  Assaulted  ?"  wailed  the  Deep  Longing. 

"I  am  merely  seizing  your  Right  to  Live  so  that  I  can  make  you 
my  servant,"  said  the  Benevolent  Assimilation. 

"Alas  and  alack !"  moaned  the  Deep  Longing.  "I  was  deceived 
by  Your  Appearance/' 

"Perhaps,"  said  the  Benevolent  Assimilation.  "That's  why  I'm 
called  by  that  Name." 

Moral:    But  there  is  nothing  Moral  about  It. 


THE  TWENTIETH  CENTURY  EDUCATION". 

"Good  morning,  gentlemen,"  said  Professor  Twiggem,  mounting 
the  rostrum  of  the  lecture-room  and  facing  the  multitude  of  stu- 
dents gathered  from  all  parts  of  the  earth.  "I  am  proud  to  see 
so  many  of  you  this  morning." 

A  ripple  of  applause  swept  over  the  lecture-room  as  Professor 
Twiggem  drew  from  his  pocket  a  roll  of  manuscript  and  adjusted 
his  glasses. 

"We  are  here  this  morning,  gentlemen,  for  the  purpose  of  dis- 
cussing the  subject  of  'Industrial  Combination,' "  said  the  pro- 
fessor. "We  are  to  discuss  it  with  reference  to  its  effects  upon 
free—" 

"Pardon  me,  professor,"  interrupted  the  Academic  Censor,  "but 
has  your  manuscript  been  passed  upon  by  the  manager  of  the 
Yardstick  Oil  Company?" 

"It  has,  sir." 

"And  has  the  superintendent  of  the  Consolidated  Embalmed 
Beef  Promotion  Syndicate  carefully  scrutinized  it  ?" 

"He  did  that  last  night,  sir." 

"And  has  the  third  vice-president  of  the  Amalgamated  Steel, 
Iron,  Brass  and  Copper  Company  placed  his  official  '0.  K.'  upon 
your  remarks?" 

"He  has,  sir." 

"Then,  sir,  may  I  ask  if  the  Ancient  and  Accidental  Society  of 
Possible  University  Donors  has  properly  examined  your  manu- 
script?" 

"It  has,  sir.  All  possible  interests  have  been  consulted  and 
pacified." 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  409 

"Then,  sir,"  said  the  Academic  Censor,  "here  is  your  ticket  which 
entitles  you  to  proceed  with  your  remarks." 

A  few  moments  later  Professor  Twiggem  was  reading  from  his 
manuscript  and  the  assembled  students  were  paying  as  little  atten- 
tion as  possible. 


BRAIN  LEAKS. 

True  faith  never  worries  over  small  things. 

The  religion  that  costs  nothing  is  worth  it. 

Slander  is  the  weapon  of  the  weak-minded. 

He  laughs  best  who  is  cheerful  all  the  time. 

Where  contentment  is  love  sits  in  the  window. 

A  word  of  cheer  costs  nothing  but  is  beyond  price. 

A  good  character  is  not  to  be  builded  on  hate  or  envy. 

Nothing  succeeds  like  water  when  properly  marketed. 

Destiny  is  only  duty  well  done.    Fate  is  duty  unperformed. 

Satan  uses  numerous  agents,  but  always  shirks  responsibility. 

True  love  forgives  much,  but  true  love  never  needs  forgiveness. 

The  foolish  man  prepares  to  die.    The  wise  man  prepares  to  live. 

The  good  time  of  yesterday  is  too  often  the  headache  of  to-day. 

Prayer  is  not  ordering  what  you  want,  but  asking  for  what  you 
need. 

Jealousy  is  the  hope  that  what  you  are  looking  for  does  not 
exist. 

The  good  in  a  dollar  should  be  measured  by  the  motive  of  the 
giver. 

Well  earned  glory  will  last  much  longer  than  unearned  prize 
money. 

Kind  words  are  ball  bearings  that  make  the  wheels  of  life  rup 
smoothly. 

Patriotism,  like  charity,  begins  at  home,  but  takes  an  early  start 
into  the  country. 

Investigation  is  the  mother  of  agitation,  therefore  the  grand- 
mother of  reformation. 

Charity  does  not  consist  in  giving  what  you  do  not  need.  It 
means  sacrifice  for  the  good  of  others. 

The  difference  between  try  and  cry  is  so  small  that  the  wonder 
is  anybody  ever  wastes  time  at  the  latter. 


4io  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

PAPA  GOOSE  RHYMES. 
(With  proper  apologies  to  his  good  wife.) 

Hickery,  dickery,  dock. 

He  took  a  flyer  in  stock. 

The  market  went  broke 
And  left  him  in  soak, 

And  he  couldn't  survive  the  shock. 

Old  Father  Hubbard  went  to  the  cupboard 
To  get  his  poor  dog  a  crust. 

When  he  got  there  the  cupboard  was  bare, 
For  bread  was  controlled  by  a  trust. 

Little  Jack  Homer 

Worked  up  a  corner 
In  sugar  and  steel  and  wheat. 

When  the  proper  time  came 

Some  checks  bore  his  name, 
And  he  captured  a  senator's  seat. 

The  Man  in  the  Moon  came  tumbling  down 
And  asked  for  the  right  way  to  Wheeling, 

He  went  to  the  East  and  his  wealth  increased 
By  a  subsidized  method  of  stealing. 

There  was  a  man  in  Pittsburg  town, 

And  he  was  wondrous  wise, 
He  piled  up  wealth  by  tariff  laws 

Enacted  by  poor  guys. 
And  as  he  saw  his  wealth  increase 

He  posed  in  manner  chaste, 
And  built  a  block  or  two  for  books 

So  he'd  not  die  disgraced. 

Old  King  Coal  was  a  jolly  old  soul, 
A  jolly  old  seeker  of  mirth. 

He  called  for  wire  and  also  some  posts, 
And  built  a  neat  fence  'round  the  earth. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  411 

Hi  diddle  doodle 
The  trusts  have  got  boodle ; 
The  taxes  are  paid  by  the  toil. 
The  syndicates  laughed 
At  their  profitable  graft 
In  sugar,  steel,  railroads  and  oil. 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 


XXII. 
POEMS. 
TO  A  WATERFOWL. 

BY  WILLIAM   CULLEN  BRYANT. 

Whither,  midst  falling  dew, 
While  glow  the  heavens  with  the  last  steps  of  day, 
Far,  through  their  rosy  depths,  dost  thou  pursue 

Thy  solitary  way? 

Vainly  the  fowler's  eye 

Might  mark  thy  distant  flight  to  do  thee  wrong, 
As,  darkly  seen  against  the  crimson  sky, 

Thy  figure  floats  along. 

Seek'st  thou  the  plashy  brink 
Of  weedy  lake,  or  marge  of  river  wide, 
Or  where  the  rocking  billows  rise  and  sink 

On  the  chafed  ocean-side  ? 

There  is  a  power  whose  care 
Teaches  the  way  along  the  pathless  coast— 
The  desert  and  illimitable  air — 

Lone  wandering,  but  not  lost. 

All  day  thy  wings  have  fanned, 
At  that  far  height,  the  cold,  thin  atmosphere, 
Yet  stoop  not,  weary,  to  the  welcome  land, 

Though  the  dark  night  is  near. 

And  soon  that  toil  shall  end; 
Soon  shalt  thou  find  a  summer  home,  and  rest, 
And  scream  among  thy  fellows;  needs  shall  ben3, 

Soon,  o'er  thy  sheltered  nest. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  413 

Thou'rt  gone,  the  abyss  of  heaven 
Hath  swallowed  up  thy  form ;  yet  on  my  heart 
Deeply  has  sunk  the  lesson  thou  ha$t  given, 

And  shall  not  soon  depart.' 

He  who,  from  zone  to  zone, 

Guides  through  the  boundless  sky  thy  certain  flight, 
In  the  long  way  that  I  must  tread  alone, 

Will  lead  my  steps  aright. 


THE  LIGHT  OF  JEFFEKSON. 

BY  HOWARD  S.   TAYLOR. 

With  bare,  bowed  heads  and  standing  up 
We  lift  a  loyal  loving  cup 

And  give  the  name  of  one 
Who  was  the  light  of  Freedom's  host, 
Our  father's  pride,  our  country's  boast, 
A  name  we  love,  the  name  we  toast, 

The  patriot  Jefferson ! 

He  came  like  Moses,  sent  of  God, 
His  pen,  the  wave-dividing  rod 

That  opened  Freedom's  way 
Out  of  the  ancient,  dark  domain 
Of  violence  and  fear  and  pain, 
Where  bigots  rage  and  tyrants  reign, 

Into  the  better  day! 

WTide-minded,  wise,  and  wisely  good, 
His  lucid  spirit  understood 

The   villainy   of   spoil; 
That  God  Almighty  never  gave 
One  man,  however  wise  and  brave, 
The  right  to  call  another  SLAVE 

And  fatten  on  his  toil ! 


414  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

He  leveled  up,  he  leveled  down; 

The  beggar's  clout,  the  monarch's  crown, 

He  held  as  equal  things; 
The  children,  playing  by  the  door 
Where  dwell  the  unknown,  humble  poor, 
He  knew  might  do  and  count  for  more 

Than  any  line  of  kings ! 

His  reverent  eyes  could  always  trace 
God's  image  in  the  human  face; 

And  each  man,  great  or  small, 
He  judged,  alone,  by  moral  worth 
And  claimed  for  each,  by  right  of  birth, 
A  chance  to  live  on  God's  green  earth 

And  share  the  hopes  of  all! 

He  knew  the  bulwarks  of  the  State, 
The  things  that  guard  and  make  it  great 

Lie  not  in  brutal  might; 
But  in  the  force  of  free  consent 
And  honest  statutes — framed  and  meant 
To  foster  labor,  peace,  content, 

Equality  and  right ! 

Thus  from  his  heart  he  sagely  drew 
In  lines  of  light,  forever  true, 

Our  Nation's  august  Chart. 
Tyrants  and  robbers  hate  and  fear 
That  beacon  thought  so  bright  and  clear, 
That  time  and  trial  make  it  dear, 

To  every  freeman's  heart! 

And  so,  we  lift  the  loving  cup 

With  bare,  bowed  heads  and  standing  up 

We  give  the  name  of  one 
Who  is  our  democratic  boast, 
The  Moses  of  our  marching  host, 
Whose  name  we  love,  whose  name  we  toast, 

The  name  of  Jefferson! 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  415 

JACKSON'S  DAY. 

BY   HOWARD   S.   TAYLOR. 

What  shall  we  say 

Of  Jackson's  Day? 
Across  the  chaSm  of  eighty  years 
We  hear  a  roar  of  British  cheers 
Where  Packenham  in  vain  assails 
Old  Hickory's  fire-fringed  cotton  bales! 
Full  three  to  one  the  redcoats  come 
With  bellowing  volleys  charging  home; 
Come  like  a  tide — then  break  as  if 
That  tide  had  struck  a  granite  cliff! 

What  shall  we  say 

Of  that  red  day? 

Why,  this — and  say  it  like  a  prayer — 
"Thank  God  we  had  a  Jackson  there !" 

Heaven  built  the  man 

Upon  a  plan 

So  simply  yet  so  largely  drawn 
He  looms  like  Athens'  Parthenon 
When  fondling  sunbeams  stoop  to  kiss 
The  temple-crowned  Acropolis. 
So  plain  he  was,  yet  stately,  too, 
So  rugged,  strong  and  staunchly  true, 
The  muse  of  history  stops  to  scan 
The  homely  greatness  of  the  man 

And  softly  say, 

On  Jackson's  Day, 
"He  was  of  common  life  begat, 
The  new  world's  full-typed  democrat." 

On  Jackson's  Day 

The  world  can  say 
He  was  a  patriot  true  and  tried, 
And  one  who  rather  would  have  died 
Than  plead  with  any  foreign  throne 
For  liberty  to  rule  our  own ! 


416  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Our  Declaration,  freedom's  chart, 
Was  stamped  upon  Ms  fearless  heart, 
And,  live  or  die,  or  sink  or  swim, 
It  was  the  voice  of  God  to  him! 

His  country's  right, 

His  country's  might, 
Twin  thoughts  together,  side  by  side 
Dwelt  in  his  soul  until  he  died! 

This,  too,  we'll  say 

On  Jackson's  Day, 

He  learned  from  men  in  ragged  jeans 
Who  fought  with  him  at  New  Orleans 
To  hold  the  great,  plain  people  dear 
And  trust  to  them  without  a  fear ! 
He  knew  the  genius  of  our  land 
Comes  not  from  mansions  rich  and  grand, 
But  has  its  humble,  potent  birth 
At  Freedom's  fane — the  cottage  hearth, 

And  this  he  knew 

Forever  true — 

The  common  people's  hearts  must  be 
The  ramparts  of  our  liberty! 

And  now  we  say, 

On  Jackson's  Day, 
Till  Jackson's  grave  shall  be  forgot 
And  bramble  hide  the  holy  spot ; 
Till  all  he  did  with  sword  and  pen 
Shall  cease  to  move  the  hearts  of  men, 
Till  then,  in  times  of  doubt  and  fear, 
Our  eyes  shall  see,  onr  ears  shall  hear 
A  countless  host  with  hope  unspent 
Walk  in  the  ways  where  Jackson  went. 

And  men  shall  kneel 

And  deeply  feel 

The  truth  of  what  they  simply  say: 
"The  good  God  gave  us  Jackson  Day." 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  417 

' V 

BEN  BOLT. 

BY  THOMAS  DUNN  ENGLISH. 

Don't  you  remember  sweet  Alice,  Ben  Bolt — 

Sweet  Alice  whose  hair  was  so  brown, 
Who  wept  with  delight  when  you  gave  her  a  smile, 

And  trembled  with  fear  at  your  frown? 
In  the  old  church-yard  in  the  valley,  Ben  Bolt, 

In  a  corner  obscure  and  alone, 
They  have  fitted  a  slab  of  the  granite  so  gray, 

And  Alice  lies  under  the  stone. 

Under  the  hickory-tree,  Ben  Bolt, 

Which  stood  at  the  foot  of  the  hill, 
Together  we've  lain  in  the  noonday  shade, 

And  listened  to  Appleton's  mill. 
The  mill-wheel  has  fallen  to  pieces,  Ben  Bolt, 

The  rafters  have  tumbled  in, 
And  a  quiet  which  crawls  round  the  walls  as  you  gaze 

Has  followed  the  olden  din. 

Do  you  mind  of  the  cabin  of  logs,  Ben  Bolt, 

At  the  edge  of  the  pathless  wood, 
And  the  button-ball  tree  with  its  motley  limbs, 

Which  nigh  by  the  doorstep  stood  ? 
The  cabin  to  ruin  has  gone,  Ben  Bolt, 

The  tree  you  would  seek  for  in  vain ; 
And  where  once  the  lords  of  the  forest  waved 

Are  grass  and  the  golden  grain. 

And  don't  you  remember  the  school,  Ben  Bolt, 

With  the  master  so  cruel  and  grim, 
And  the  shaded  nook  in  the  running  brook 

Where  the  children  went  to  swim? 
Grass  grows  on  the  master's  grave,  Ben  Bolt, 

The  spring  of  the  brook  is  dry, 
And  of  all  the  boys  who  were  schoolmates  then 

There  are  only  you  and  I. 


418  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

There  is  change  in  the  things  I  loved,  Ben  Bolt, 

They  have  changed  from  the  old  to  the  new; 
But  I  feel  in  the  deeps  of  my  spirit  the  truth, 

There  never  was  change  in  you. 
Twelvemonths  twenty  have  passed,  Ben  Bolt, 

Since  first  we  were  friends — yet  I  hail 
Your  presence  a  blessing,  your  friendship  a  truth, 

Ben  Bolt  of  the  salt-sea  gale. 


THE  PENALTY. 

BY  J.  A.  EDGERTON  IN  "THE  RAM's  HORN." 

We  are  mad — grown  mad  in  the  race  for  gold. 

We  are  drunk  with  the  wine  of  gain ; 
The  truths  our  fathers  proclaimed  of  old 

We  spurn  with  a  high  disdain. 
But  while  the  conqueror's  race  we  run, 

Our  rulers  should  not  forget 
That  the  God  who  reigned  over  Babylon 

Is  the  God  who  is  reigning  yet. 

Would  we  tread  in  the  paths  of  tyranny, 

NOT  reckon  the  tyrant's  cost? 
Who  taketh  another's  liberty, 

His  freedom  hath  also  lost. 
Would  we  win  as  the  strong  have  ever  won, 

Make  ready  to  pay  the  debt. 
For  the  God  who  reigned  over  Babylon 

Is  the  God  who  is  reigning  yet. 

The  ruins  of  dynasties  passed  away 

In  eloquent  silence  lie; 
And  the  despot's  fate  is  the  same  to-day 

That  was  in  the  days  gone  by. 
Against  all  wrong  and  injustice  done 

A  rigid  account  is  set, 
For  the  God  who  reigned  over  Babylon 

Is  the  God  who  is  reigning  yet. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  419 

The  laws  of  right  are  eternal  laws, 

The  judgments  of  truth  are  true; 
My  greed — blind  masters,  I  bid  you  pause 

And  look  on  the  work  you  do. 
You  blind  with  sheckels  your  fellow  man, 

Your  hands  with  his  blood  are  wet, 
And  the  God  who  reigned  over  Babylon 

Is  the  God  who  is  reigning  yet. 


LITTLE  BOY  BLUE. 

BY   EUGENE   FIELD. 

The  little  toy  dog  is  covered  with  dust, 

But  sturdy  and  stanch  he  stands; 
And  the  little  toy  soldier  is  red  with  rust, 

And  his  musket  moulds  in  his  hands. 
Time  was  when  the  little  toy  dog  was  new 

And  the  soldier  was  passing  fair, 
And  that  was  the  time  when  our  Little  Boy  Blue 

Kissed  them  and  put  them  there. 

"Now  don't  you  go  till  I  come,"  he  said, 

"And  don't  you  make  any  noise!" 
So  toddling  off  to  his  trundle-bed, 

He  dreamed  of  the  pretty  toys. 
And  as  he  was  dreaming,  an  angel  song 

Awakened  our  Little  Boy  Blue — 
Oh,  the  years  are  many,  the  years  are  long, 

But  the  little  toy  friends  are  true. 

Ay,  faithful  to  Little  Boy  Blue  they  stand, 

Each  in  the  same  old  place, 
Awaiting  the  touch  of  a  little  hand, 

The  smile  of  a  little  face. 
And  they  wonder,  as  waiting  these  long  years  through, 

In  the  dust  of  that  little  chair, 
What  has  become  of  our  Little  Boy  Blue 

Since  he  kissed  them  and  put  them  there? 


420  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

AMEN. 

BY   REV.   F.   S.   BROWNING. 

I  cannot  say, 
Beneath  the  pressure  of  life's  cares  to-day, 

I  joy  in  these; 

But  I  can  say 
That  I  had  rather  walk  this  rugged  way, 

If  Him  it  please. 

I  cannot  feel 
That  all  is  well,  when  dark'ning  clouds  conceal 

The  shining  sun; 

But  then,  I  know 
God  lives  and  loves;  and  say,  since  it  is  so, 

"Thy  will  be  done." 

I  cannot  speak 
In  happy  tones;  the  tear-drops  on  my  cheek 

Show  I  am  sad; 

But  I  can  speak 
Of  grace  to  suffer  with  submission  meek, 

Until  made  glad. 

I  do  not  see 
Why  God  should  e'en  permit  some  things  to  be, 

When  He  is  love; 

But  I  can  see, 
Though,  often  dimly,  through  the  mystery, 

His  hand  above ! 

I  do  not  know 
Where  falls  the  seed  that  I  have  tried  to  sow 

With  greatest  care; 

But  I  shall  know 
The  meaning  of  each  waiting  hour  below, 

Sometime,  somewhere! 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  421 

I  do  not  look 
Upon  the  present,  nor  in  Nature's  book, 

To  read  my  fate; 

But  I  do  look 
For  promised  blessings  in  God's  Holy  Book ; 

And  I  can  wait. 

I  may  not  try 
To  keep  the  hot  tears  back,  but  hush  that  sigh — 

"It  might  have  been" — 

And  try  to  still 
Each  rising  murmur  and  to  God's  sweet  will 

Respond,  "Amen!" 


NEARER  HOME. 

BY   PHCEBE   GARY. 

One  sweetly  solemn  thought 
Comes  to  me  o'er  and  o'er — 

I'm  nearer  home  to-day 

Than  I  ever  have  been  before; 

Nearer  my  Father's  house, 
Where  the  many  mansions  be; 

Nearer  the  great  white  throne, 
Nearer  the  Jasper  sea; 

Nearer  the  bound  of  life, 

Where  we  lay  our  burdens  down; 
Nearer  leaving  the  cross, 

Nearer  wearing  the  crown! 

But  lying  darkly  between. 

Winding  down  through  the  night, 
Is  the  silent  unknown  stream 

That  leads  at  last  to  the  light. 

Closer  and  closer  my  steps 
Come  to  the  dread  Abysm ; 

Closer  Death  to  my  lips 
Presses  the  awful  chrism. 


422  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Father,  perfect  my  trust ! 

Strengthen  my  feeble  faith ! 
Let  me  feel  as  I  would,  when  I  stand 

On  the  shore  of  the  river  of  Death! 

Feel  as  I  would,  when  my  feet 
Are  slipping  over  the  brink; 

For  it  may  be  I'm  nearer  home, 
Nearer  home,  than  I  think. 


THE  CREED  OF  THE  FLAG. 

A  reader  of  THE  COMMONER  has  asked  for  the  publication  of 
a  poem  written  by  Dr.  Howard  S.  Taylor,  of  Chicago,  and  read 
at  the  Jackson  Day  Banquet  given  by  the  Bryan  League  of 
Chicago,  in  1899.  It  is  a  literary  gem  and  presents  a  patriotic 
sentiment  especially  appropriate  for  consideration  at  this  time. 
In  beautiful  language  it  emphasizes  the  fact  that  the  flag  is  sacred, 
not  because  of  its  color,  or  because  of  the  material  of  which  it  is 
made,  but  because  of  the  spirit  which  it  has  represented.  The 
decision  of  the  Supreme  Court,  if  upheld  by  the  people,  will  rob 
the  flag  of  its  peculiar  excellence  and  make  it  represent  the  same 
brutal  and  barbarous  doctrine  for  which  the  flags  of  European 
empires  stand. 

"Who  will  haul  down  the  flag?" 

— President  McKinley. 

"Who  will  haul  down  the  flag  ?"  quoth  he ; 

And  no  man  an  answer  gave. 
But  who  will  haul  up  the  flag,  ask  we, 

Where  the  flag  ought  never  wave? 
Over  an  arrogant  mission  of  spoil 

That  takes,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
A  subject  race  and  a  conquered  soil 

And  a  government  based  on  force! 
Answer  us ! — answer  us !  true  and  fair, 
Who  will  haul  up  Old  Glory  there? 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  423 

"Who  will  haul  down  the  flag?"  quoth  he; 

Nay,  think  how  it  first  went  up 
When  War  astride  of  the  land  and  sea 

Poured  wrath  from  his  brimming  cup ; 
When  brave  men  died  and  left  in  bequest 

One  pledge  for  the  great  and  the  small, 
Not  stars  for  a  few  and  stripes  for  the  rest, 

But  the  flag  of  our  country  for  all ! 
Answer  us,  truly  and  plainly,  we  pray ; 
Was  that  not  its  meaning  in  Washington's  day  ? 

From  Washington's  day  to  Jackson's  time, 

From  Yorktown  to  New  Orleans, 
Did  any  man  follow  that  flag  sublime 

And  doubt  what  the  symbol  means? 
Free  self-ruled  States,  each  one  as  a  star 

Fixed  fast  in  a  field  of  blue, 
Fenced  in  by  the  blood-red  stripes  of  war 

To  preserve  them  for  me  and  you ! 
Answer  us,  now — do  you  dare  to  drag 
The  old  faith  out  of  our  fathers'  flag? 

"Who  will  haul  down  the  flag?"  quoth  he; 

Why,  no  hand  of  flesh  and  bone 
Can  lower  that  flag,  on  land  or  sea, 

Till  the  faith  of  the  flag  is  gone ! 
Till  a  few  shall  rule  and  cunningly  keep 

The  bunting  to  garnish  their  greed; 
Till  dollars  are  dear  and  humanity  cheap 

By  the  force  of  a  tory  creed ! 
Then  will  it  fall ! — but  answer  us,  clear, 
Do  you  fancy  that  hour  is  drawing  near? 

Did  our  Liberty  Bell  ring  in  vain? 

Was  our  Declaration  a  lie? 
Must  we  turn  to  the  Old  World,  again, 

With  the  penitent  prodigal's  cry? 
Must  we  arm  us  and  march  in  the  van 

Of  Europe's  barbaric  parade 
And  boom  out  a  gunpowder  gospel  to  man 

To  open  a  pathway  for  trade? 


424  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Shall  we  strut  thro'  the  world  and  bluster  and  brag 
With  the  dollar-mark  stamped  on  the  brave  old  flag  ? 

Nay,  haul  up  the  flag — raise  it  high — 

Not  yet  is  its  spirit  spent ! 
Let  it  sing  to  the  wind  and  the  sky 

The  truth  that  it  always  meant ! 
Let  it  sing  of  the  birthright  of  man — 

Of  progress  that  never  can  lag; 
Let  it  sing  that  trade  may  go — where  it  can, 

But  liberty  follows  the  flag ! 

Yea,  haul. up  Old  Glory — but,  comrades,  take  heed 
That  no  man  part  the  old  flag  from  the  creed ! 


THE  MAN  WITH  THE  HOE. 

BY   EDWIN   MAEKHAM. 

(Written  after  seeing  Millet's  World-Famous  Painting.) 

"God  made  man  in  His  own  image, 

in  the  image  of  God  made  He  him. — Genesis. 

Bowed  by  the  weight  of  centuries  he  leans 

Upon  his  hoe  and  gazes  on  the  ground, 

The  emptiness  of  ages  in  his  face, 

And  on  his  back  the  burden  of  the  world. 

Who  made  him  dead  to  rapture  and  despair, 

A  thing  that  grieves  not  and  that  never  hopes, 

Stolid  and  stunned,  a  brother  to  the  ox? 

Who  loosened  and  let  down  this  brutal  jaw? 

Whose  was  the  hand  that  slanted  back  this  brow? 

Whose  breath  blew  out  the  light  within  this  brain  ? 

Is  this  the  Thing  the  Lord  God  made  and  gave 

To  have  dominion  over  sea  and  land ; 

To  trace  the  stars  and  search  the  heavens  for  power; 

To  feel  the  passion  of  Eternity? 

Is  this  the  dream  He  dreamed  who  shaped  the  suns 

And  pillared  the  blue  firmament  with  light? 


The  Commomer  Condensed.  425 

Dowu  all  the  stretch  of  Hell  to  its  last  gulf 

There  is  no  shape  more  terrible  than  this — 

More  tongued  with  censure  of  the  world's  blind  greed — 

More  filled  with  signs  and  portents  for  the  soul — 

More  fraught  with  menace  to  the  universe. 

What  gulfs  between  him  and  the  seraphim ! 

Slave  of  the  wheel  of  labor,  what  to  him 

Are  Plato  and  the  swing  of  Pleiades? 

What  are  the  long  reaches  of  the  peaks  of  song, 

The  rift  of  dawn,  the  reddening  of  the  rose? 

Through  this  dread  shape  the  suffering  ages  look ; 

Time's  tragedy  is  in  that  aching  stoop; 

Through  this  dread  shape  humanity  betrayed, 

Plundered,  profaned  and  disinherited, 

Cries  protest  to  the  Judges  of  the  World, 

A  protest  that  is  also  prophecy. 

0  masters,  lords  and  rulers  in  all  lands, 

Is  this  the  handiwork  you  give  to  God, 

This  monstrous  thing  distorted  and  soul-quenched  ? 

How  will  you  ever  straighten  up  this  shape; 

Touch  it  again  with  immortality ; 

Give  back  the  upward  looking  and  the  light ; 

Eebuild  in  it  the  music  and  the  dream; 

Make  right  the  immemorial  infamies, 

Perfidious  wrongs,  immedicable  woes? 

0  masters,  lords  and  rulers  in  all  lands, 
How  will  the  Future  reckon  with  this  Man? 
How  answer  his  brute  question  in  that  hour 
When  whirlwinds  and  rebellion  shake  the  world? 
How  will  it  be  with  kingdoms  and  with  kings— 
With  those  who  shaped  him  to  the  thing  he  is— 
When  this  dumb  Terror  shall  reply  to  God 
After  the  silence  of  the  centuries  ? 


428  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Mr.  Sibley.  I  would  like  to  ask  you  (perhaps  not  entirely  con- 
nected with  the  matter  under  discussion)  what  objection  there  could 
be  to  having  the  option  of  redeeming  either  in  silver  or  gold  lie 
with  the  treasury  instead  of  the  note  holder? 

Secretary  Carlisle.  If  that  policy  had  been  adopted  at  the  be- 
ginning of  resumption — and  I  am  not  saying  this  for  the  purpose 
of  criticising  the  action  of  any  of  my  predecessors,  or  anybody 
else — but  if  the  policy  of  reserving  to  the  government,  at  the  be- 
ginning of  resumption,  the  option  of  redeeming  in  gold  or  silver 
all  its  paper  presented,  I  believe  it  would  have  worked  beneficially, 
and  there  would  have  been  no  trouble  growing  out  of  it,  but  the 
Secretaries  of  the  Treasury  from  the  beginning  of  resumption  have 
pursued  a  policy  of  redeeming  in  gold  or  silver,  at  the  option  of 
the  holder  of  the  paper,  and  if  any  secretary  had  afterward  at- 
tempted to  change  that  policy  and  force  silver  upon  a  man  who 
wanted  gold,  or  gold  upon  a  man  who  wanted  silver,  and  especially 
if  he  had  made  that  attempt  at  such  a  critical  period  as  we  have 
had  in  the  last  two  years,  my  judgment  is,  it  would  have  been 
very  disastrous.  There  is  a  vast  difference  between  establishing 
a  policy  at  the  beginning,  and  reversing  a  policy  after  it  has  been 
long  established,  and  especially  after  the  situation  has  been  changed. 

It  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Carlisle  thought  it  a  mistake  to  com- 
mence paying  in  gold  but  considered  it  dangerous  to  interfere 
with  the  custom  after  it  was  once  established.  By  the  same  logic 
it  can  be  argued  that  we  should  not  establish  the  custom  of  re- 
deeming the  silver  dollars  in  gold. 

The  measure  recommended  by  the  committee  gives  to  the  financiers 
absolute  control  over  the  national  debt.  They  can  increase  it  at 
any  time  by  presenting  silver  dollars  for  redemption  and  com- 
pelling an  issue  of  bonds  to  replenish  the  gold  reserve.  They 
can  in  the  same  way  contract  the  volume  of  money  in  circulation, 
since  money  drawn  into  the  treasury  by  an  issue  of  bonds  cannot 
go  out  again  unless  it  is  used  to  meet  current  expenses  (and  that 
is  only  possible  when  the  expenditures  exceed  the  receipts)  or 
loaned  out  to  favorite  banks. 

Second,  The  conversion  of  standard  silver  dollars  into  sub- 
sidiary coin  is  equivalent  to  the  retirement  of  silver  as  standard 
money,  and  this  is  the  last  act  in  the  program  instituted  some 
twenty-seven  years  ago  and  persistently  pursued  ever  since.  If 
this  plan  is  completed,  gold  will  be  the  only  legal  tender  money  and 
bank  paper  the  only  credit  money.  Bank  notes  not  being  a  general 
legal  tender  and  gold  not  being  in  circulation  among  the  people, 
the  masses  will  then  be  doing  business  with  money  which  will 
not  legally  discharge  their  debts. 

To  convert  a  standard  money  into  a  credit  money  is  to  narrow 
the  foundation  of  our  financial  system  and  at  the  same  time 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  429 

enlarge  the  superstructure.   Such  a  course  weakens  the  system  and 
both  hastens  catastrophe  and  intensifies  it  when  it  comes. 

It  is  estimated  that  ninety-five  per  cent,  of  the  business  of 
the  country  is  done  with  substitutes  for  money,  but  as  all  these  sub- 
stitutes are  convertible  into  money  on  demand  there  must  be  a 
proportion  between  the  substitutes  and  the  money  beyond  which 
it  is  not  safe  to  go.  If,  as  at  present,  a  large  part  of  the  money 
in  circulation  is  not  a  legal  tender,  the  proportion  between  the 
volume  of  legal  tender  money  and  substitutes  for  money  is  even 
greater.  The  proposed  measure,  by  decreasing  the  money  of  ulti- 
mate redemption  and  increasing  the  volume  of  promises  to  pay 
money,  still  further  enlarges  the  proportion  between  money  and 
its  substitutes;  this  necessarily  adds  to  the  risk  of  the  business 
man  and  lessens  the  security  of  the  general  public. 

If,  at  any  time,  foreign  complications  or  panics  compel  a  con- 
siderable exportation  of  gold,  the  proportion  between  money  and 
its  substitutes  will  be  still  further  increased  or  an  immense  re- 
duction will  be  necessary  in  the  volume  of  business. 

Respectfully  yours, 

W.  J.  BRYAN. 


THE  MAN  WITH  THE  HOE. 

On  another  page  will  be  found  Edwin  Markham's  famous  poem, 
entitled  "The  Man  with  the  Hoe."  Below  will  be  found  Mr. 
Bryan's  comment  thereon,  written  for  the  New  York  Journal: 

It  is  not  strange  that  Edwin  Markham's  poem  entitled  "The  Man 
with  the  Hoe"  created  a  profound  sensation.  It  is  a  sermon  ad- 
dressed to  the  heart,  and  its  lesson  is  not  limited  to  any  nation, 
race  or  clime.  It  voices  humanity's  protest  against  inhuman  greed. 
There  is  a  majestic  sweep  to  the  argument,  and  some  of  the  lines 
pierce  like  arrows: 

Is  this  the  Thing  the  Lord  God  made  and  gave 
To  have  dominion  over  sea  and  land; 
To  trace  the  stars  and  search  the  heavens  for  power; 
To  feel  the  passion  of  Eternity? 
***** 

Through  this  dread  shape  the  suffering  ages  look; 
Time's  tragedy  is  in  that  aching  stoop ; 
Through  this  dread  shape  humanity  betrayed, 
Plundered,  profaned  and  disinherited, 
Cries  protest  to  the  Judges  of  the  World. 

***** 
Is  this  the  handiwork  you  give  to  God? 


430  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

How  feeble,  in  comparison,  have  been  the  answers  to  it! 
The  poem  deals  with  the  condition,  the  cause,  the  remedy  and 
the  warning. 

The  condition  is  set  forth  in  the  lines: 

Down  all  the  stretch  of  Hell  to  its  last  gulf 

There  is  no  shape  more  terrible  than  this — 

More  tongued  with  censure  of  the  world's  blind  greed — 

More  filled  with  signs  and  portents  for  the  soul — 

More  fraught  with  menace  to  the  universe. 

It  is  not  answer  to  the  indictment  to  say  that  the  poet  selects 
his  type  not  from  the  middle  classes,  but  from  the  lowest  level. 
He  is  dealing  with  the  mill  which  takes  in,  as  raw  material,  the 
man  made  in  the  image  of  his  Creator  and,  if  it  is  allowed  to 
complete  its  work,  turns  out  as  the  finished  product — 

A  thing  that  grieves  not  and  that  never  hopes. 

Sometimes  it  is  a  tryant  who  oppresses  for  the  benefit  of  himself, 
his  family  and  the  warriors  upon  whom  he  relies  to  enforce  his 
authority;  sometimes  it  is  an  aristocracy  which  gathers  in  the 
fruits  of  power  and  throws  upon  the  masses  the  burdens  of  govern- 
ment ;  sometimes  it  is  a  plutocracy  which  openly  exalts  money  and 
debases  flesh  and  blood ;  but  everywhere  it  is  the  same  brutal  spirit 
which  ignores  the  brotherhood  of  man  and  violates  the  command- 
ment :  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself." 

The  extremes  of  society  are  being  driven  further  and  further 
apart.  Wealth  is  being  concentrated  in  the.  hands  of  a  few,  and 
tenancy  is  on  the  increase.  At  one  end  of  the  scale  luxury  and 
idleness  breed  effeminacy;  at  the  other  end  of  the  scale  want  and 
destitution  breed  desperation. 

Civilization  cannot  be  measured  by  the  refinements  and  the 
enjoyments  of  the  rich;  the  toilers  who  produce  the  nation's 
wealth  in  time  of  peace,  and  constitute  the  nation's  strength 
in  time  of  war,  must  participate  in  every  forward  move- 
ment of  the  race.  In  fact,  they  are  so  important  a  factor  that 
the  real  advancement  of  the  race  is  measured  by  their  advance- 
ment. Improved  machinery  and  inventive  genius  have  multiplied 
the  productive  power  of  the  individual,  but  the  producers  have 
not  received  their  share  of  the  increase.  The  capitalistic  class 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  431 

and  the  speculating  class  have  enjoyed,  and  are  enjoying,  too  large 
a  part  of  the  proceeds  of  labor. 
What  is  the  cause? 

Who  made  him  dead  to  rapture  and  despair? 

The  literary  sycophants  who  strew  rhetorical  flowers  in  the 
pathway  of  the  successful,  without  inquiring  into  the  methods 
employed  for  securing  success,  complacently  throw  the  responsi- 
bility for  failure  in  life  upon  God,  or  Nature,  or  upon  the  man 
himself.  Is  it  the  fault  of  God  or  of  Nature  that  children  are 
driven  into  factories  at  so  early  an  age  that  their  bodies  are 
stunted,  their  minds  dwarfed  and  the  strength  and  usefulness 
of  future  generations  lessened?  Is  God  or  Nature  responsible 
for  the  laws  which  permit  this  impairment  of  the  man-power 
and  woman-power  of  the  nation  ?  The  labor  organizations  have  done 
much  to  mitigate  the  evils  of  child  labor  and  to  shorten  the  hours 
of  adult  labor,  but  what  encouragement  have  they  received  from 
those  who  favor  government  by  injunction,  oppose  arbitration  and 
denounce  as  disturbers  of  the  peace  all  who  criticise  existing  con- 
ditions ? 

Is  it  the  fault  of  God  or  of  Nature  that  our  tax  laws  are  so 
made  and  our  tax  systems  so  administered  that  the  poor  man 
pays  more  than  his  share  of  the  taxes  and  the  rich  man  less  than 
his  share? 

Is  God  or  Nature  to  blame  for  the  substitute-system,  which  raises 
the  purchasing  power  of  the  dollar  in  the  hands  of  the  money 
changer,  while  it  increases  the  burden  of  debt  to  the  man  who 
owes  and  decreases  the  value  of  property  in  the  hands  of  the  wealth 
producers  ? 

Is  God  or  Nature  responsible  for  a  paper  money  trust  that 
makes  the  people  at  large  the  victims  of  private  individuals  en- 
trusted with  the  control  of  the  volume  of  currency  ? 

Is  God  or  Nature  responsible  for  private  monopolies  which 
corner  the  markets,  extort  from  the  people  and  disburse  the  pro- 
ceeds among  the  holders  of  watered  stock? 

Is  God  or  Nature  to  blame  for  the  substitution  of  force  for 
reason  and  might  for  right  in  government? 

Is  God  or  Nature  responsible  for  the  nation's  entrance  upon  a 
career  of  conquest,  entailing  upon  the  many  the  burden  and  menace 


43O  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

How  feeble,  in  comparison,  have  been  the  answers  to  it! 
The  poem  deals  with  the  condition,  the  cause,  the  remedy  and 
the  warning. 

The  condition  is  set  forth  in  the  lines: 

Down  all  the  stretch  of  Hell  to  its  last  gulf 

There  is  no  shape  more  terrible  than  this — 

More  tongued  with  censure  of  the  world's  blind  greed — 

More  filled  with  signs  and  portents  for  the  soul — 

More  fraught  with  menace  to  the  universe. 

It  is  not  answer  to  the  indictment  to  say  that  the  poet  selects 
his  type  not  from  the  middle  classes,  but  from  the  lowest  level. 
He  is  dealing  with  the  mill  which  takes  in,  as  raw  material,  the 
man  made  in  the  image  of  his  Creator  and,  if  it  is  allowed  to 
complete  its  work,  turns  out  as  the  finished  product — 

A  thing  that  grieves  not  and  that  never  hopes. 

Sometimes  it  is  a  tryant  who  oppresses  for  the  benefit  of  himself, 
his  family  and  the  warriors  upon  whom  he  relies  to  enforce  his 
authority;  sometimes  it  is  an  aristocracy  which  gathers  in  the 
fruits  of  power  and  throws  upon  the  masses  the  burdens  of  govern- 
ment ;  sometimes  it  is  a  plutocracy  which  openly  exalts  money  and 
debases  flesh  and  blood ;  but  everywhere  it  is  the  same  brutal  spirit 
which  ignores  the  brotherhood  of  man  and  violates  the  command- 
ment :  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself." 

The  extremes  of  society  are  being  driven  further  and  further 
apart.  Health  is  being  concentrated  in  the.  hands  of  a  few,  and 
tenancy  is  on  the  increase.  At  one  end  of  the  scale  luxury  and 
idleness  breed  effeminacy;  at  the  other  end  of  the  scale  want  and 
destitution  breed  desperation. 

Civilization  cannot  be  measured  by  the  refinements  and  the 
enjoyments  of  the  rich;  the  toilers  who  produce  the  nation's 
wealth  in  time  of  peace,  and  constitute  the  nation's  strength 
in  time  of  war,  must  participate  in  every  forward  move- 
ment of  the  race.  In  fact,  they  are  so  important  a  factor  that 
the  real  advancement  of  the  race  is  measured  by  their  advance- 
ment. Improved  machinery  and  inventive  genius  have  multiplied 
the  productive  power  of  the  individual,  but  the  producer?  have 
not  received  their  share  of  the  increase.  The  capitalistic  class 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  431 

and  the  speculating  class  have  enjoyed,  and  are  enjoying,  too  large 
a  part  of  the  proceeds  of  labor. 
What  is  the  cause? 

Who  made  him  dead  to  rapture  and  despair? 

The  literary  sycophants  who  strew  rhetorical  flowers  in  the 
pathway  of  the  successful,  without  inquiring  into  the  methods 
employed  for  securing  success,  complacently  throw  the  responsi- 
bility for  failure  in  life  upon  God,  or  Nature,  or  upon  the  man 
himself.  Is  it  the  fault  of  God  or  of  Nature  that  children  are 
driven  into  factories  at  so  early  an  age  that  their  bodies  are 
stunted,  their  minds  dwarfed  and  the  strength  and  usefulness 
of  future  generations  lessened?  Is  God  or  Nature  responsible 
for  the  laws  which  permit  this  impairment  of  the  man-power 
and  woman-power  of  the  nation  ?  The  labor  organizations  have  done 
much  to  mitigate  the  evils  of  child  labor  and  to  shorten  the  hours 
of  adult  labor,  but  what  encouragement  have  they  received  from 
those  who  favor  government  by  injunction,  oppose  arbitration  and 
denounce  as  disturbers  of  the  peace  all  who  criticise  existing  con- 
ditions? 

Is  it  the  fault  of  God  or  of  Nature  that  our  tax  laws  are  so 
made  and  our  tax  systems  so  administered  that  the  poor  man 
pays  more  than  his  share  of  the  taxes  and  the  rich  man  less  than 
his  share? 

Is  God  or  Nature  to  blame  for  the  substitute-system,  which  raises 
the  purchasing  power  of  the  dollar  in  the  hands  of  the  money 
changer,  while  it  increases  the  burden  of  debt  to  the  man  who 
owes  and  decreases  the  value  of  property  in  the  hands  of  the  wealth 
producers  ? 

Is  God  or  Nature  responsible  for  a  paper  money  trust  that 
makes  the  people  at  large  the  victims  of  private  individuals  en- 
trusted with  the  control  of  the  volume  of  currency  ? 

Is  God  or  Nature  responsible  for  private  monopolies  which 
corner  the  markets,  extort  from  the  people  and  disburse  the  pro- 
ceeds among  the  holders  of  watered  stock? 

Is  God  or  Nature  to  blame  for  the  substitution  of  force  for 
reason  and  might  for  right  in  government  ? 

Is  God  or  Nature  responsible  for  the  nation's  entrance  upon  a 
career  of  conquest,  entailing  upon  the  many  the  burden  and  menace 


432  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  militarism  and  conferring  upon  the  few  the  benefits  of  exploita- 
tion? 

The  United  States  supreme  court  has  coined  the  phrase,  "lar- 
ceny by  law/'  and  compared  with  ordinary  stealing  this  form  of 
theft  may  be  called  grand  larceny;  and  yet  wholesale  wrong- 
doing is  never  taken  into  account  by  those  who  assume  that  all 
who  are  poor  deserve  their  poverty,  and  that  all  who  are  rich  earn 
their  riches.  If  one  employs  another  to  commit  robbery  he  is 
as  guilty  as  if  he  commits  the  act  himself ;  does  it  change  the  moral 
character  of  the  act  because  the  injury  is  done  indirectly  instead 
of  directly?  Does  it  change  the  moral  character  of  the  act  because 
the  injury  is  done  through  legislation  which  he  has  secured  or 
in  the  absence  of  some  righteous  law  the  passage  of  which  he 
has  prevented? 

The  accumulation  of  wealth  by  honest  means  is  to  be  encouraged, 
but  the  line  must  be  drawn  between  honest  wealth — the  reward 
of  brain  service  or  muscle  service  rendered — and  predatory  wealth 
which  defies  the  law  or  turns  government  itself  into  a  machine 
for  the  plunder  of  the  public. 

The  indolent  cannot  expect  plenty  under  any  just  form  of 
government,  neither  can  the  vicious  expect  happiness,  but  under 
bad  laws  those  who  work  the  hardest  may  enjoy  the  least,  and 
those  who  labor  least  may  have  the  most. 

But  the  remedy: 

How  will  you  ever  straighten  up  this  shape, 
Touch  it  again  with  immortality  ? 

Give  justice  to  every  creature — justice  in  the  methods  of  govern- 
ment, justice  in  the  distribution  of  the  burdens  of  government, 
justice  in  the  making  of  the  laws,  justice  in  the  interpretation 
of  the  laws,  justice  in  the  execution  of  the  laws.  Justice  first 
and  charity  afterwards. 

Justice  will  not  eliminate  distress  entirely,  but  it  will  greatly 
reduce  the  number  of  those  who  come  within  the  description  of 
the  poet.  There  will  still  be  some  poor,  some  destitute,  some 
desperate.  Generations  of  vice  will  transmit  tendencies  toward  vice, 
which  must  be  reformed. 

Some  will  be  victims  of  unavoidable  misfortunes — they  will 
need  the  aid  of  the  more  fortunate.  The  orphan  will  need  a  foster- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  433 

parent,  the  widow  will  need  a  friend,  the  aged  without  relatives 
will  need  a  benefactor.  The  weak  must  be  encouraged  by  the 
strong;  those  who  fall  must  be  lifted  up. 

Love  is  the  antithesis  of  greed ;  it  will  inspire  both  justice  and 
mercy.  Love  and  love  alone  can  regulate  the  relations  between  man 
and  man  and  plant  a  hope  in  the  breast  of  every  child  born  into 
the  world. 

When  every  man-made  wrong  is  remedied  there  will  still  be 
suffering  enough  to  enable  every  person  to  prove  his  love  toward 
God  by  manifesting  his  compassion  toward  his  fellows. 

But  the  poet  presents  also  a  warning : 

How  will  the  future  reckon  with  this  man, 
How  answer  his  brute  question  in  that  hour 
When  whirlwinds  of  rebellion  shake  the  world? 
How  will  it  be  with  kingdoms  and  with  kings — 
With  those  who  shaped  him  to  the  thing  he  is — 
When  this  dumb  terror  shall  reply  to  God 
After  the  silence  of  the  centuries? 

In  monarchies  revolution  is  the  only  weapon  of  the  oppressed; 
under  our  form  of  government  wrongs  are  righted  by  the  ballot; 
but  even  here  the  longer  a  necessary  reform  is  delayed  the  more 
disturbance  its  accomplishment  causes. 

Victor  Hugo  has  described  the  mob  as  "the  human  race  in 
misery."  We  cannot  afford  to  make  people  miserable.  Life  is 
secure  and  property  rights  are  respected  in  proportion  as  the 
people  find  life  worth  living.  Happy  will  be  the  lot  of  all  when  each 
member  of  society  makes  to  society  a  just  and  adequate  return  for 
that  which  he  receives  from  society.  Happy  will  be  the  lot  of 
all  when  each  member  of  society  recognizes  the  indissoluble  tie 
that  binds  together  the  highest  and  the  lowest,  the  strongest  and 
the  weakest,  the  richest  and  the  poorest — when  each  member  of 
society  aids  according  to  his  ability  to  give  back  to  the  poet's 
subject : 

*     *     *     the  upward  looking  and  the  light; 
Eebuild  in  it  the  music  and  the  dream ; 
Make  right  the  immemorial  infamies, 
Prefidious  wrongs,  immedicable  woes. 


434  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

RATIFY  THE  TREATY.   DECLARE  THE  NATION'S 
POLICY. 

I  gladly  avail  myself  of  the  columns  of  the  Journal  to  suggest 
a  few  reasons  why  the  opponents  of  a  colonial  policy  should  make 
their  fight  in  support  of  a  resolution  declaring  the  nation's  pur- 
pose rather  than  against  the  ratification  of  the  treaty. 

The  conflict  between  the  doctrine  of  self-government  and  the 
doctrine' of  alien  government  supported  by  external  force  has  been 
thrust  upon  the  American  people  as  a  result  of  the  war.  It  is 
so  important  a  conflict  that  it  cannot  be  avoided,  and,  since  it 
deals  with  a  question  now  before  congress,  it  must  be  considered 
immediately.  It  is  useless  to  ask  what  effect  this  new  issue  will 
have  upon  other  issues.  Issues  must  be  met  as  they  arise ;  they  can- 
not be  moved  about  at  will  like  pawns  upon  a  chess  board. 

The  opponents  of  imperialism  have  an  opportunity  to  choose 
the  ground  upon  which  the  battle  is  to  be  fought.  Why  not  oppose 
the  ratification  of  the  treaty? 

First,  because  a  victory  won  against  the  treaty  would  prove  only 
temporary  if  the  people  really  favor  a  colonial  policy. 

That  a  victory  won  against  the  treaty  would  depend  for  its  value 
entirely  upon  the  sentiment  of  the  people  is  evident.  A  minority 
can  obstruct  action  for  a  time,  but  a  minority,  so  long  as  it  re- 
mains a  minority,  can  only  delay  action  and  enforce  reflection; 
it  cannot  commit  the  nation  to  a  policy. 

When  there  seemed  some  probability  of  the  rejection  of  the 
treaty  the  friends  of  the  administration  began  to  suggest  the 
propriety  of  withholding  the  treaty  until  the  new  senate  could  be 
convened  in  extra  session.  As  the  new  senate  will  have  a  con- 
siderable republican  majority  it  would  be  quite  certain  to  ratify 
the  treaty.  Thus  an  effort  to  prevent  the  ratification  of  the  treaty 
would  be  likely  to  fail  in  the  very  beginning.  But  let  us  sup- 
pose it  possible  to  defeat  ratification  in  both  the  present  and  the 
next  senate — what  would  be  the  result?  Would  the  imperialists 
abandon  the  hope  of  annexing  the  Philippines  so  long  as  they  could 
claim  the  support  of  the  president  and  a  majority  of  both  houses? 
Could  a  minority  of  the  senate  prevent  the  annexation  of  Hawaii? 
As  we  are  now  in  possession  of  the  Philippine  Islands  the  advo- 
cates of  a  colonial  policy  might  secure  an  appropriation  sufficient 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  435 

to  pay  the  twenty  millions  agreed  upon  and  leave  the  rest  of  the 
treaty  for  future  consideration.  In  other  words,  if  the  opponents 
of  imperialism  have  a  majority  in  both  houses  they  can  declare 
the  nation's  policy;  if  the  imperialists  have  a  majority  in  both 
houses  they  cannot  be  permanently  thwarted  by  a  minority  in  the 
senate. 

A  resolution  declaring  the  nation's  policy  recognizes  that  the 
destiny  of  the  United  States  is  in  the  hands  of  all  the  people 
and  seeks  to  ascertain  at  once  the  sentiment  of  the  people  as  re- 
flected by  their  representatives. 

If  that  decision  is  in  harmony  with  the  policy  which  has  pre- 
vailed in.  the  past  the  question  will  be  settled  and  the  people 
will  return  to  the  consideration  of  domestic  problems.  If,  however, 
the  advocates  of  imperialism  either  postpone  consideration  or  con- 
trol the  action  of  congress  an  appeal  will  be  taken  to  the  voters 
at  the  next  election.  So  great  a  change  in  our  national  policy 
cannot  be  made  unless  the  authority  therefor  comes  directly  and 
unequivocally  from  that  source  of  all  power  in  a  republic — the 
people. 

In  answer  to  those  who  fear  that  the  question  of  imperialism,  if 
discussed,  will  draw  attention  away  from  other  questions,  it  is 
sufficient  to  say  that  the  people  cannot  be  prevented  from  con- 
sidering a  question  which  reaches  down  to  the  foundation  prin- 
ciples of -the  republic.  Instead  of  avoiding  the  issue  it  is  the  part 
of  wisdom  to  deal  with  it  at  once  and  dispose  of  it  permanently. 

Second,  the  rejection  of  the  treaty  would  be  unwise  because  the 
opponents  of  the  treaty  would  be  compelled  to  assume  responsi- 
bility for  the  continuance  of  war  conditions  and  for  the  risks 
which  always  attend  negotiations  with  a  hostile  nation. 

The  rejection  of  the  treaty  would  give  the  administration  an 
excuse  for  military  expenditures  which  could  not  be  justified  after 
the  conclusion  of  peace,  and  the  opponents  of  the  treaty  would 
be  charged  with  making  such  appropriations  necessary.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  in  case  the  treaty  is  rejected  negotiations 
must  be  renewed  with  an  enemy  whose  ill-will  is  not  concealed. 
Who  is  able  to  guarantee  the  nation  against  new  dangers  and 
new  complications?  In  order  to  form  an  estimate  of  the  risks 
which  would  thus  be  incurred,  one  has  only  to  recall  the  unex- 
pected things  which  have  happened  since  war  was  declared.  Is 


436  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

it  wise  to  so  make  the  attack  as  to  assume  all  the  risks  when  the 
same  end  can  be  gained  by  a  plan  which  throws  the  risks  upon 
our  opponents?  If  the  imperialists  vote  down  a  resolution  de- 
claring the  nation's  policy  or  postpone  its  consideration,  they  be- 
come responsible  for  any  loss  of  life  or  expenditure  of  money 
which  may  follow  as  a  result  of  such  action. 

I  suggest  below  a  few  reasons  in  support  of  a  resolution  de- 
claring it  to  be  the  nation's  purpose  to  establish  a  stable  govern- 
ment in  Cuba  and  the  Philippines  and  then  to  give  the  inhabitants 
independence  under  an  American  protectorate  which  will  guard 
them  against  molestation  from  without. 

First,  such  a  course  is  consistent  with  national  honor. 

Our  nation  owes  it  to  the  nations  with  which  we  have  dealings, 
as  well  as  to  the  inhabitants  of  Cuba,  Porto  Eico  and  the  Philip- 
pines, to  announce  immediately  what  it  intends  to  do  respecting 
the  territory  surrendered  by  Spain. 

The  president  has  said  that  the  only  purpose  our  nation  has  in 
taking  possession  of  Cuba  is  to  assist  the  inhabitants  to  establish 
a  stable  and  independent  government.  It  can  do  no  harm  for 
congress  to  reaffirm  this  purpose,  and  it  may  do  much  good.  The 
Cubans,  having  fought  for  independence  for  many  years  and  against 
great  odds,  are  naturally  jealous  of  the  liberty  which  they  have  won 
and  no  doubt  should  be  left  as  to  the  sincerity  and  good  faith 
of  our  government  in  its  dealings  with  them.  Such  a  declaration 
would  not  only  be  harmless,  but  it  is  almost  made  necessary  by 
the  flippant,  if  not  contemptuous,  tone  in  which  some  United 
States  officials  speak  of  the  intelligence  and  patriotism  of  the 
Cubans  and  of  their  right  to  independence. 

The  duty  of  declaring  our  national  policy  in  regard  to  the 
Philippines  is  even  more  imperative.  The  Filipinos  were  fighting 
for  independence  when  the  United  States  declared  war  against 
Spain.  In  the  formal  protest  filed  with  the  peace  commissioners 
in  Paris  the  representatives  of  Aguinaldo  assert  that  they  received 
friendly  assurances  from  United  States  officials  and  acted  upon 
those  assurances  in  co-operating  against  the  Spaniards.  Whether 
or  not  such  assurances  were  given,  frankness  and  honesty  should 
characterize  our  dealings  with  them. 

If  we  announce  to  the  world  that  we  hold  the  Philippines  Islands, 
not  for  pecuniary  profit,  but  in  trust  for  the  inhabitants;  if  we 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  437 

declare  that  our  only  purpose  is  to  assist  the  Filipinos  to  establish 
a  stable  and  independent  government,  friendly  relations  will  be 
maintained  and  there  will  be  little  need  of  troops.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  Filipinos  are  not  to  have  independence,  but  merely 
a  change  of  masters  we  should  break  the  news  to  them  at  once  and 
send  over  a  large  army  to  instruct  them  in  the  principles  of  a 
government  which,  in  one  hemisphere,  derives  its  just  powers  from 
the  consent  of  the  governed  and  in  the  other  derives  its  authority 
from  superior  force. 

While  our  nation  is  not  prepared  to  draft  a  complete  code  of 
laws  suited  to  the  peculiar  needs  of  the  Filipinos  we  ought  to  be 
able  to  decide  at  once  whether  we  intend  to  deal  with  them  ac- 
cording to  the  principles  of  our  own  government  or  according 
to  the  customs  prevailing  among  European  monarchies.  Even  a 
republican  congress  ought  to  be  able  to  choose  without  hesitation 
between  a  policy  which  establishes  a  republic  in  the  Orient  and  a 
policy  which  sows  the  seeds  of  militarism  in  the  United  States. 

The  trade  relations  possible  under  a  protectorate  would  be 
of  more  value  to  the  United  States  than  any  which  could  come 
as  the  result  of  forcible  annexation. 

The  people  of  Porto  Kico  have  not  manifested  any  desire  for 
political  independence  and  would  in  all  probability  favor  annexa- 
tion, yet  it  is  only  right  that  they  should  have  an  opportunity 
to  choose.  The  resolution  authorizing  intervention  recognized  the 
right  of  the  Cubans  to  independence.  To  be  consistent  we  must 
also  respect  the  wishes  of  the  inhabitants  of  Porto  Eico.  The 
resolution  could,  without  impropriety,  offer  annexation  to  Porto 
Eico. 

In  a  recent  interview  I  suggested  that  the  United  States  should 
retain  a  harbor  and  coaling  station  in  the  Philippines  and  in 
Porto  Eico  in  return  for  services  rendered  and  added  that  Cuba 
should  be  asked  to  make  a  similar  concession  on  the  same  ground. 

Second,  a  resolution  declaring  the  nation's  purpose  presents  a 
plain  and  clear-cut  issue  between  the  theory,  of  self-government 
and  the  colonial  policy.  It  presents  a  positive,  affirmative  method 
of  dealing  with  the  question.  In  opposing  the  treaty  we  would  be 
on  the  defensive ;  in  outlining  a  policy  we  shall  be  aggressive.  The 
strongest  arguments  which  could  be  used  in  support  of  the  treaty 
will  lose  their  force  entirely  when  Spain  is  eliminated  and  the 


438  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

American  people  are  able  to  dispose  of  the  question  according 
to  their  own  ideas  and  interests. 

Third,  it  secures,  by  easier  means,  every  end  that  can  be  se- 
cured by  a  rejection  of  the  treaty. 

If  an  officer  of  the  law  arrests  a  person  in  possession  of  stolen 
goods  he  can  either  compel  the  return  of  the  goods  to  the  owner 
or  he  can  first  rescue  them  and  then  return  them  himself.  We 
find  Spain  in  the  possession  of  a  title  to  a  part  of  the  Philippines. 
She  has  not  yet  conquered  all  the  native  tribes,  but  the  title  which 
she  has  was  acquired  by  force  and  has  been  held  by  force.  We 
can  either  compel  her  to  surrender  her  title  to  the  Filipinos,  as 
we  compelled  her  to  surrender  Cuba  to  the  Cubans,  or  we  can  ac- 
cept possession  and  then  of  our  own  accord  turn  over  the  islands 
to  the  inhabitants.  The  peace  commissioners  might  have  demanded 
independence  for  the  Filipinos  as  they  did  for  the  Cubans ;  if  they 
did  not  properly  interpret  the  wishes  of  the  people  of  the  United 
States  the  blame  must  fall  upon  them  and  not  upon  the  people. 
Certainly  seventy  millions  of  citizens  are  under  no  obligations  to 
abate  their  devotion  to  the  ideals  which  they  have  cherished 
for  a  century  in  order  to  indorse  the  work  of  a  peace  commission 
or  to  approve  of  the  instructions  of  an  executive. 

If  it  is  urged  that  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  imposes  upon 
us  an  obligation  to  pay  twenty  millions  of  dollars  to  Spain,  I 
answer,  first,  that  this  amount  can  probably  be  secured  from  the 
Filipinos  in  return  for  independence,  and,  second,  that,  if  it 
cannot  be  secured  from  them,  it  is  better  to  lose  the  amount  en- 
tirely than  to  expend  a  larger  sum  in  securing  a  modification  of 
the  treaty. 

It  is  better  to  regard  the  amount  paid  as  a  contribution  to 
liberty  than  to  consider  it  the  market  price  of  land,  improvements 
or  people. 

To  terminate  the  war  upon  the  same  high  plane  upon  which 
it  was  inaugurated  is  worthy  of  a  great  republic;  to  descend  from 
a  sublime  beginning  to  the  purchase  of  sovereignty  (for  our  own 
profit)  from  a  nation  whose  title  we  disputed  in  Cuba  would 
lay  us  open  to  the  charge  of  Punic  faith. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  439 


INDUSTKIAL  COMBINATIONS. 

Below  will  be  found  an  article  written  by  Mr.  Bryan  recently 
for  Collier's  Weekly  and  reproduced  by  the  courtesy  of  that  paper : 

In  considering  industrial  combinations,  the  subject  naturally 
divides  itself  into  the  condition  to  be  considered,  the  probable 
result  of  present  tendencies,  and  the  remedy. 

The  word  "trust"  used  to  designate  large  corporations,  does 
not  accurately  describe  the  thing  complained  of.  In  the  beginning 
combinations  in  restraint  of  trade  were  formed  by  an  agreement 
between  separate  companies,  whereby  the  stock  was  held  in  trust 
by  an  association  which  controlled  several  corporations.  At  present 
there  is  no  deposit  of  stock  in  trust,  but  in  place  of  the  old  system 
we  find  a  great  corporation  owning  and  controlling  a  number  of 
plants.  A  distinction  should  be  made  between  a  corporation, 
however  large,  and  a  monopoly.  In  fact,  it  is  impossible  to  consider 
what  is  known  as  the  trust  question  without  keeping  in  mind  the 
proportion  which  the  output  of  the  corporation  under  discussion 
bears  to  the  total  output  of  all  factories  in  the  United  States. 
For  instance,  if  we  have  one  hundred  woollen  factories  scattered 
over  the  country,  producing  together  the  total  amount  of  domestic 
woollens  manufactured  in  the  United  States,  a  combination  whereby 
two,  or  five,  or  even  ten,  were  joined  under  one  management  would 
present  a  very  different  situation  from  that  which  would  be  pro- 
duced by  the  consolidation  of  all  of  them  into  one  corporation.  The 
monopoly  feature  appears  whenever  a  corporation  is  sufficiently 
powerful  to  control  the  market.  The  fundamental  question  to  be 
considered,  therefore,  is  whether  competition  is  desirable  or  un- 
desirable. I  shall  speak  of  this  later  in  discussing  remedies,  but  it 
must  always  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  elimination  of  competition 
is,  temporarily  at  least,  beneficial  to  the  man  who  has  the  monopoly. 
This  cannot  'be  doubted,  but  is  it  not  detrimental  both  to  the 
consumer  and  to  the  laborer? 

RIGHTS   OF   THE   LABORER. 

The  consumer  has  certain  needs  which  must  be  supplied ;  under 
competition,  he  is  protected  from  extortion  by  the  opportunity 
which  he  has  to  purchase  the  article  offered  him  at  the  lowest 
price.  Under  monopoly  he  has  no  choice,  but  must  take  what  is 
offered  him  at  the  price  fixed  by  the  seller.  A  skilled  laborer  has 
a  right  to  demand  from  his  employer  full  value  for  his  services. 

When  there  are  many  employers,  each  pecuniarily  interested 
in  securing  the  best  service,  the  laborer  is  better  protected  than 
he  is  when  there  is  but  one  employer.  The  labor  organization  is 
an  aid  to  the  laboring  men  in  securing  reasonable  hours,  just  com- 
pensation, and  fair  conditions.  At  present  the  labor  organization 


440  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

is  practically  the  only  protection  the  wage-earner  has,  hut  the 
labor  organization,  however  perfect  and  complete,  is  no  match  for 
an  absolute  industrial  monopoly.  Workmen  with  fainilios  dependent 
upon  them  could  not  live  long  without  work,  neither  could  they 
afford  to  engage  in  another  line  of  work  where  their  special  train- 
ing would  be  of  no  advantage.  The  pressing  every-day  needs  of 
the  body  make  a  contest  of  endurance  between  flesh  and  blood  on 
the  one  side  and  capital  on  the  other  very  unequal. 

IMPOSSIBLE  COMPETITION. 

The  man  who  attempts  to  manufacture  an  article  in  competition 
with  a  thoroughly  established  monopoly  has  before  him  a  difficult, 
if  not  an  almost  impossible  task.  To  recur  to  the  above  illustra- 
tion, if  all  the  woollen  mills  now  in  existence  should  be  gathered 
under  the  control  of  one  corporation  with  a  capital  of  half  a  billion, 
who  could  compete  with  it  successfully?  If  a  person  amply  sup- 
plied with  capital  to  conduct  under  ordinary  conditions  a  suc- 
cessful mill  were  to  compete  with  a  monopoly,  such  monopoly  would 
be  able,  at  a  very  small  expense  to  itself,  to  undersell  him  in  his 
particular  field,  while  maintaining  prices  in  other  parts  of  the 
country.  If  an  organization  of  equal  capital  attempted  rivalry, 
it  would  first  have  to  overcome  the  advantage  which  the  established 
industry  had  secured  by  the  advertisement  of  its  wares,  and  then, 
if  it  were  successful,  the  country  would  have  more  woollen  plants 
than  necessary  to  supply  the  demand,  and  more  skilled  laborers 
than  would  be  required  for  the  work. 

SAGE'S  NOTE  OF  WAENING. 

Private  monopolies  have  always  been  regarded  as  unlawful,  and 
there  are  numerous  instances  where  the  people  have  overthrown 
them  when  their  exactions  become  intolerable.  Mr.  McKinley  has 
condemned  the  trusts,  although,  it  must  be  confessed,  with  ever 
diminishing  emphasis.  Organized  capital  has  been  making  such 
gigantic  strides  toward  the  control  of  industry  during  the  last 
few  months  that  even  those  who  have  been  in  the  habit  of  be- 
littling reformers,  and  accustomed  to  regard  all  criticism  of  cor- 
porations as  evidence  of  discontent,  are  becoming  alarmed.  Mr. 
Russell  Sage  has  never  been  considered  a  demagogue,  neither  has 
he  shown  himself  unduly  hostile  to  capitalists  as  a  class;  his  note 
of  warning,  therefore,  is  the  more  significant.  In  a  recently 
published  article  in  the  North  American  Review  he  thus  describes 
the  industrial  situation  as  it  appears  to  him: 

"The  chief  owners  of  the  Standard  Oil  business  have  grown 
so  enormously  wealthy  that,  in  their  individual  as  well  as  in  their 
corporate  capacity,  they  dominate  wherever  they  choose  to  go.  They 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  441 

can  make  or  unmake  almost  any  property,  no  matter  how  vast. 
They  can  compel  any  man  to  sell  them  anything  at  any  price." 

He  fortifies  his  own  observations  by  quoting  the  language  of 
Henry  Clews,  another  Wall  Street  operator.  This  presents  one 
phase  of  the  question.  When  combinations  of  capital  "can  make 
or  unmake  almost  any  property,  no  matter  how  vast,"  and  when 
they  can  "almost  compel  any  man  to  sell  them  anything  at  any 
price/'  then  they  cease  to  be  private  affairs  and  become  matters 
of  public  concern.  The  question  is  not  whether  the  public  has  a 
right  to  interfere  with  the  manner  in  which  these  combinations 
use  their  own  property,  but  whether  the  public  will  allow  them  to 
appropriate  or  destroy  the  property  of  other  people. 

Of  the  new  steel  company,  Mr.  Sage  says: 

"The  consolidations  of  to-day  begin  at  the  very  outset  with 
capitalizations  that  cast  all  past  experiences  into  the  shade,  and 
that  almost  stagger  the  imagination.  The  steel  combination  now 
forming  we  are  told,  is  to  start  off  with  a  capitalization  of 
$1,000,000,000.  This  is  more  than  one-half  of  the  national  debt. 
It  is  one-seventieth  of  the  entire  wealth  of  the  United  States.  The 
total  money  circulation  in  the  United  States,  according  to  the 
treasurer's  statistics,  is  $2,113,294,938.  It  will  be  seen,  therefore, 
that  this  company's  issue  of  securities  will  represent  practically 
one-half  of  the  entire  volume  of  money  in  America.  In  a  year 
or  two,  if  precedents  count  for  anything,  this  capitalization  will 
be  very  largely  increased,  and  that  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  stock- 
holders in  the  steel  company,  which  was  the  basis  of  the  new- 
combination,  got  three  shares  of  stock  in  the  new  company  for 
one  in  the  old — scores  of  millions  being  thus  added  to  the  interest- 
earning  securities  in  the  United  States,  by  merely  the  stroke  of 
a  pen.  When  wealth  is  created  in  that  way,  what  security  is  there 
for  the  whole  scheme?  Not  another  furnace  added  to  the  plant; 
simply  a  lifting  process,  and  what  was  one  million  before  is  three 
millions  now.  The  great  experience  and  strength  of  the  men  who 
produced  this  change  will  make  us  accept  the  new  valuation,  and 
that  is  all  there  is  in  it. 

If  any  of  the  men  in  whom  we  very  properly  have  this  confi- 
dence should  die  suddenly,  everything  would  be  disorganized. 
Even  as  it  is,  things  may  break  at  a  critical  period,  and  then  we 
shall  have  to  find  a  new  level  with  considerable  trouble  and  agita- 
tion to  ourselves.  Just  at  present,  no  one  can  say,  with  anything 
like  accuracy,  where  we  stand. 

UNDERESTIMATED   CAPITALIZATION. 

This  corporation  was  being  formed  when  Mr.  Sage's  article  was 
written,  and  he  underestimated  the  capitalization,  but  his  remarks 
in  regard  to  the  watering  of  stock  are  in  point;  the  illustration 


442  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

used  to  set  forth  the  magnitude  of  the  corporations  is  apt,  and  his 
comment  upon  the  effect  of  the  death  of  a  trust  manager  is  cer- 
tainly worthy  of  consideration. 

The  watering  of  stock  is  not  only  indefensible,  hut  it  contradicts 
the  arguments  made  by  interested  parties  in  defense  of  trusts. 
The  favorite  contention  of  promoters  is  that  consolidation  makes 
production  more  economical,  and,  therefore,  tends  to  lower  prices. 
But  nearly  every  corporation  that  attempts  a  monopoly  proceeds 
to  capitalize  the  expected  savings,  thus  giving  to  the  stockholders 
the  advantage  promised  to  the  consumers. 

If  a  corporation  plans  to  control  any  product,  and  estimates 
a  saving  of  one  million  by  the  discharge  of  travelling  salesmen,  it 
figures  that  that  amount  will  pay  5  per  cent,  interest  on  twenty 
million  dollars,  and  it  immediately  increases  the  stock  to  that  ex- 
tent. A  prospectus  issued  by  the  International  Steam  Pump  Com- 
pany shows  that  the  properties  bought  were  estimated  at  less  than 
twelve  million  dollars,  while  the  company  was  capitalized  at 
twenty-seven  and  a  half  millions.  The  earnings  for  the  preceding 
year  were  estimated  at  one  million  two  hundred  thousand.  The 
prospectus  adds,  in  conspicuous  type:  "A  conservative  estimate 
of  the  advantages  derived  from  consolidation  is  believed  to  be 
one  million  three  hundred  thousand  over  the  present  earnings, 
which  would  make  a  total  of  future  net  earnings,  with  the  esti- 
mated earnings  based  on  ten  months  of  the  year's  business,  of 
two  million  five  hundred  thousand,  or  six  per  cent,  on  the  pre- 
ferred stock,  and  over  eleven  per  cent,  on  the  common  stock  of  the 
new  company." 

THE   MANY   CANNOT   INFLATE   VALUES. 

The  farmer  is  not  able  to  inflate  the  value  of  his  farm;  the 
merchant  is  not  able  to  inflate  the  value  of  the  goods  upon  his 
shelf;  the  laboring  man  cannot  put  a  fictitious  value  upon  his 
services.  But  a  monopoly  is  able  to  collect  dividends  upon  watered 
stock,  and  to  secure  interest  upon  money  never  invested  in  the 
business.  Why  should  it  be  tolerated?  Why  should  a  fictitious 
person,  called  a  corporation,  be  granted  privileges  or  be  permitted 
to  enjoy  immunities  denied  to  the  natural  citizen?  It  is  inevitable 
that  the  ordinary  individual,  whether  customer,  merchant,  or 
employe,  must  feel  the  evil  effects  of  over-capitalization.  If  a 
farmer  realizes  only  a  small  profit  when  he  sells,  but  is  com- 
pelled when  he  buys  to  pay  the  manufacturer  a  large  profit,  it 
is  evident  that  he  will  fall  behind  in  the  race  for  a  competency. 
If  the  merchant  must  sell  at  a  profit  fixed  by  competition,  and 
buy  at  a  price  fixed  by  monopoly,  and  upon  terms  regulated 
wholly  in  the  interests  of  the  manufacturer,  he  will  have  to 
bear  all  the  vicissitudes  of  trade,  and  will  find  himself  at  a 
great  disadvantage.  The  managers  of  the  corporations  will  be 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  443 

interested  in  keeping  the  stock  at  par,  and  in  dull  times  there 
will  be  a  perpetual  contest  between  wages  and  watered  stock. 

The  same  number  of  the  North  American  Review  which  con- 
tains Mr.  Sage's  article  contains  replies  thereto  by  Mr.  Hill  of 
the  Great  Northern,  Northern  Pacific  and  Burlington  Railroad 
combination,  Mr.  Schwab  of  the  Steel  Trust.  Mr.  Flint  of  the 
Rubber  Trust,  and  Mr.  Logan  of  the  Envelope  Trust.  But  the 
testimony  given  by  these  gentlemen  must  be  taken  with  that 
allowance  which  is  always  made  for  the  testimony  of  witnesses 
pecuniarily  interested. 

APPLICATION   OF   EVEEY-DAY   RULE. 

In  discussing  the  result  to  follow  from  the  establishment  of 
industrial  combinations  for  the  suppression  of  competition,  one 
can  only  apply  the  rules  which  are  seen  in  operation  every  day. 
Human  nature  does  not  change  much  from  generation  to  gener- 
ation; selfishness  is  as  potent  an  influence  to-day  as  it  was  a 
century  ago.  Advancement  is  not  secured  by  the  elimination  of 
selfishness,  but  by  restraining  excessive  manifestations  of  it. 

First,  extortionate  prices  to  the  consumer  will  prevail.  The 
same  greed  which  leads  trust  magnates  to  issue  stock  in  excess 
of  the  money,  invested  will  lead  them  to  make  the  dividends  as 
large  as  possible,  and  the  same  greed  which  leads  them  to  in- 
crease the  dividends  will  lead  them  to  repeat  stock  inflation 
indefinitely. 

Second,  industrial  monopoly  is  likely  to  result  in  lessening 
wages  and  in  increasing  friction  between  employers  and  employes. 
The  larger  the  corporation  the  more  complete  the  separation  of 
the  employe  from  the  manager  of  the  corporation,  and  the  less 
the  sympathy  between  those  who  toil  and  those  who  fix  the  wages. 

Third,  the  enhancement  of  the  price  of  trust-made  articles  must 
in  the  long  run  lessen  the  demand  for  the  product  by  lessening  the 
ability  of  the  consumers  to  purchase.  This  in  turn  means  cur- 
tailment of  production  and  a  diminished  demand  for  labor. 

Fourth,  under  a  system  of  monopoly  all  loss  can  be  thrown  upon 
the  laborers.  Under  competition  the  factory  often  runs  at  bare 
cost,  or  even  below  cost,  because  suspension  of  work  might  mean 
the  scattering  of  the  employes  to  other  centres  of  industry.  But 
when  a  corporation  has  control  of  the  market,  it  can  close  down 
without  loss  and  leave  the  employes  in  idleness  until  the  sur- 
plus is  worked  off  at  a  high  price.  Thus  a  high  wage  per  day, 
when  there  is  employment,  may  mean  a  small  annual  income. 

Fifth,  monopoly  is  likely  to  result  in  deterioration  of  the 
product.  .  . 

Sixth,  the  opportunity  to  make  enormous  profits  by  market 
fluctuations  is  apt  to  lead  the  managers  of  monopolies  to  speculate 


444  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

at  the  expense  of  the  ordinary  stockholders,  and  suggests  a  method 
of  influencing  public  officials  far  more  potent  than  any  form 
of  direct  bribery. 

Seventh,  monopoly  provides  a  few  places  with  excessive  salaries, 
but  denies  to  a  multitude  of  competent  and  deserving  men  the 
possibility  of  industrial  and  financial  independence.  It  crowns 
a  few  with  laurels,  and  condemns  the  masses  to  hopeless  servi- 
tude. 

Eighth,  as  imperialism  substitutes  a  sullen  subject  for  a  bold 
and  self-assertive  citizen,  so  an  industrial  monopoly  converts  the 
ambitious  and  progressive  artisan  into  a  timid  and  servile  de- 
pendent. 

Ninth,  with  a  complete  monopoly  we  may  expect  that  the  con- 
trol, descending  with  the  stock  from  father  to  son,  will  create  an 
industrial  aristocracy,  as  hostile  to  liberty  as  the  landed  aristoc- 
racy which  was  overthrown  by  our  forefathers. 

Whether  a  remedy  needs  to  be  applied  depends  upon  the 
answer  given  to  the  inquiry  in  regard  to  competition.  If  competi- 
tion is  desirable,  a  private  monopoly  is  indefensible.  If,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  suppression  of  competition  is  a  thing  to  be  de- 
sired, some  plan  must  be  devised  to  make  the  suppression  complete. 
It  would  be  obviously  unfair  for  one  portion  of  the  community 
to  be  protected  from  competition  while  another  portion  was  sub- 
jected to  it.  No  principle  can  be  accepted  as  sound  which  is  not 
susceptible  of  general  application.  If  the  people  decide  that 
competition  should  be  suppressed,  they  must  choose  between  pri- 
vate monopoly  and  socialism.  I  do  not  mean  that  system  of 
socialism  now  called  extreme,  which  would  place  the  govern- 
ment in  control  of  all  the  forces  of  production  and  distribution, 
but  a  still  more  complete  system,  which  would  make  the  state  the 
beneficiary  of  all  service  rendered  and  the  distributor  of  all  com- 
pensation. 

EXTINCTION   OF   PRIVATE   MONOPOLY. 

Extinction  of  private  monopoly  is,  in  my  judgment,  both  de- 
girable  and  possible.  The  corporation  is  the  institution  through 
which  the  monopoly  develops,  and,  as  a  corporation  is  purely 
a  creature  of  law,  the  people  can  place  on  it  such  limitations  as 
may  be  necessary  for  public  welfare  and  protection.  The  state 
has  power  to  prevent  the  creation  of  any  corporation  within  its 
limits,  or  to  fix  the  conditions  upon  which  a  corporation  may 
exist.  It  also  has  the  power,  or  should  have,  to  prescribe  the 
terms  upon  which  a  foreign  corporation  may  do  business  in  the 
state.  The  distinction  between  the  natural  man  and  the  cor- 
porate person  is  so  great  that  the  state  should  have  the  power,  if 
it  has  not  now,  to  give  its  citizens  any  necesary  protection  from 
corporations  organized  elsewhere.  But  the  state  is  not  able  to 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  445 

furnish  a  complete  remedy,  and,  without  taking  away  the  rights 
which  the  state  now  has,  congress  should  give  additional  protec- 
tion. The  Sherman  anti-trust  law  prohibits  contracts  entered 
into  by  separate  persons  or  corporations  for  the  limiting  of  pro- 
duction, fixing  of  price,  or  division  of  territory.  While  this  law 
has  not,  according  to  the  belief  of  many,  been  enforced  as  it 
should  have  been,  it  is  not  broad  enough  to  reach  a  monopoly 
attempted  by  a  single  corporation.  According  to  the  constitution, 
congress  has  power  to  regulate  interstate  commerce,  and  under 
this  power  it  certainly  has  a  right  to  define  a  monopoly,  and  to 
prevent  such  a  monopoly  from  engaging  in  interstate  commerce. 
It  can  deny  to  a  monopoly  the  use  of  the  mails  as  it  does  to  the 
lottery.  It  can  also  deny  to  it  the  use  of  the  interstate  telegraph 
lines  or  railroad  system.  It  can  require  a  corporation  to  estab- 
lish to  the  satisfaction  of  the  interstate  commerce  commission, 
or  of  some  other  commission  created  for  the  purpose,  the  fact  that 
there  is  no  water  in  the  stock,  and  that  it  is  not  attempting  to 
monopolize  any  branch  of  business,  and  it  can  provide  for  a 
revocation  of  the  permit  or  license  if  the  conditions  are  violated. 
It  can  fix  a  maximum  proportion  between  the  business  which 
any  corporation  engaged  in  interstate  commerce  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  do,  and  the  total  business  done  in  that  line.  It  can 
fix  the  maximum  capitalization  of  corporations  engaged  in  inter- 
state commerce,  or  the  maximum  dividends  which  they  may  earn. 
It  can  require  a  corporation  to  to  sell  to  all  customers  at  the  same 
price  and  on  the  same  terms,  and  it  can  remove  the  tariff  from 
trust-made  articles.  These  are  a  few  of  the  remedies  that  have 
been  discussed.  . 

While  congress  cannot  interfere  with  a  domestic  corporation, 
it  has  supreme  power  over  commerce  between  the  states, 
failure  of  congress  to  pass  necessary  laws,  and  of  officials 
force  existing  laws,  is  due  to  the  fact  that  members  of  congress 
and   executive   officers   are  under  obligations  to  the  trusts  and 
monopolies   for   campaign   assistance^    The   ^1  ** 
end  to  private  monopolies  as  soon  as  they  undertake  it  i 
and  not  before. 


BRITISH  RULE  IN  INDIA. 

Justice  Brown  in  delivering  the  opinion  of  the  court  in  the 
Downes  case  said: 

"Grave  apprehensions  of  danger  are  felt  by  *W<™*£  ™ 
-a  fear  lest  an  unrestramed  P™*  p^STl^d.tian,  in 

instants,  ,nay 


446  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

be  engulfed  in  a  centralized  despotism.  These  fears,  however, 
find  no  justification  in  the  action  of  congress  in  the  past  century, 
nor  in  the  conduct  of  the  British  parliament  toward  its  outlying 
possessions  since  the  American  revolution!" 

It  marks  an  epoch  in  American  history  when  the  highest  court 
of  the  land  uses  the  experience  of  England  to  support  an  attack 
upon  written  constitutions.  It  is  the  most  audacious  and  un- 
blushing surrender  of  fundamental  principles  which  has  occurred 
in  this  country.  As  Justice  Brown  invites  us  to  consider  and 
admire  the  conduct  of  an  unrestrained  parliament  it  may  not  be 
out  of  place  to  look  at  English  rule  in  India.  Below  will  be  found 
a  discussion  of  this  subject  prepared  for  and  published  in  the 
New  York  Journal: 

In  the  discussion  of  a  colonial  policy  for  the  United  States  fre- 
quent references  will  be  made  to  England's  government  of  India. 
The  imperialists  are  already  declaring  that  Great  Britain's  policy 
has  resulted  in  profit  to  herself  and  benefit  to  her  Asiatic  subjects. 

The  opponents  of  imperialism,  on  the  other  hand,  find  in  India's 
experience  a  warning  against  a  policy  which  places  one  nation  under 
the  control  of  another  and  distant  nation. 

In  1600  the  first  East  India  company  was  organized.  Its 
charter  was  for  fifteen  years,  but  a  new  and  perpetual  charter  was 
granted  in  1609.  Under  the  reign  of  Charles  II.  the  company 
obtained  another  charter,  which  continued  former  privileges  and 
added  authority  "to  make  peace  or  war  with  any  prince  or  people 
(in  India)  not  being  Christian." 

The  affairs  of  the  company  were  managed  with  an  eye  single 
to  gain,  and  intervention  in  the  quarrels  of  native  princes  resulted 
in  the  gradual  extension  of  its  influence.  Money  was  the  object, 
and  the  means  employed  would  not  always  bear  scrutiny.  There 
was,  however,  no  hypocritical  mingling  of  an  imaginary  "philan- 
thropy" with  an  actual  "five  per  cent." 

In  1757  Lord  Clive,  by  the  battle  of  Plassey,  made  the  com- 
pany the  dominant  power  in  Indian  politics,  and  under  Clive  and 
Hastings  the  income  of  the  East  India  company  reached  enormous 
proportions. 

The  history  of  the  century,  beginning  with  the  battle  of  Plassey 
and  ending  with  the  Sepoy  mutiny  in  1857,  was  written  under 
headlines  like  the  following:  "The'  First  War  With  Hyder  Ali," 
"The  Rohilla  War,"  "The  Second  War  With  Hyder  Ali." '"The  War 
With  Tippoo  Saib,"  "The  War  With  the  Mahrattas,"  "Suppres- 
sion of  the  Pindaris,"  "The  Last  of  the  Peshwas,"  "The  First 
Burmese  War,"  "The  First  Afghan  War,"  "The  Conquest  of 
Scinde,"  "The  Sekh  Wars,"  "The  Conquest  of  Punjab,"  "The 


The  Commoner  Condensed. 

Annexation  of  Pegu,"  "The  Annexation  of  Oudh,"  "The  Outbreak 
of  Meerut,"  "The  Seizure  of  Delhi,"  "The  Siege  of  Lucknow," 
etc.,  etc. 

This  brief  review  is  not  given  because  it  is  interesting,  but  to 
acquaint  the  reader  with  the  imperialistic  plan  of  solving  the 
problem  of  civilization  by  the  elimination  of  unruly  factors. 

In  1858  parliament,  by  an  act  entitled  an  act  "for  the  better 
government  of  India,"  confessed  that  the  management  of  Indian 
affairs  could  be  improved  and  placed  the  control  in  the  hands  of  a 
Secretary  of  State  for  India  and  a  council. 

In  1877  Queen  Victoria  assumed  the  title  of  Empress  of  India. 

Even  if  it  could  be  shown  that  England's  sovereignty  over  India 
had  brought  blessings  to  the  Indian  people  and  advantage  to  the 
inhabitants  of  Great  Britain,  we  could  not  afford  to  adopt  the 
policy.  A  monarchy  can  engage  in  work  which  a  republic  dare 
not  undertake.  A  monarchy  is  constructed  upon  the  theory  that 
authority  descends  from  the  king  and  that  privileges  are  granted 
by  the  crown  to  the  subjects.  Of  course  the  ruling  power  recog- 
nizes that  it  owes  a  duty  to  the  people,  but  while  the  obligation 
is  binding  upon  the  conscience  of  the  sovereign  it  cannot  be  en- 
forced by  the  subject. 

Webster  presented  this  idea  with  great  force  in  his  speech  on 
the  Greek  revolution.  After  setting  forth  the  agreement  be- 
tween the  allied  powers,  he  said :  "The  first  of  these  principles  is, 
that  all  popular  or  constitutional  rights  are  holden  no  otherwise 
than  as  grants  from  the  crown.  Society,  upon  this  principle,  has 
no  rights  of  its  own;  it  takes  good  government,  when  it  gets  it, 
as  a  boon  and  a  concession,  but  can  demand  nothing.  It  is  to 
live  in  that  favor  which  emanates  from  royal  authority,  and  if  it 
have  the  misfortune  to  lose  that  favor,  there  is  nothing  to  pro- 
tect it  against  any  degree  of  injustice  and  oppression.  It  can 
rightfully  make  no  endeavor  for  a  change,  by  itself;  its  whole 
privilege  is  to  receive  the  favors  that  may  be  dispensed  by  the 
sovereign  power,  and  all  its  duty  is  described  in  the  single  word, 
submission.  This  is  the  plain  result  of  the  principal  continental 
state  papers;  indeed,  it  is  nearly  the  identical  text  of  some  of 
them." 

The  English  people  have  from  time  to  time  forced  the  crown 
to  recognize  certain  rights,  but  the  principle  of  monarchy  still 
exists.  The  sovereign  has  a  veto  upon  all  legislation;  the  fact 
that  this  veto  has  not  been  used  of  late  does  not  change  the  gov- 
ernmental theory  and,  in  India,  the  application  of  the  theory  has 
deprived  the  Indian  people  of  participation  in  the  control  of  ! 
own  affairs.  ,  . 

A  nation  which  denies  the  principle  that  governments  derive 
their  -just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed  can  give  se 
government  to  one  colony  and  deny  it  to  another;   it  can  give  i 
to  colonies  strong  enough  to  exact  it  by  force  ana  deny  i 


448  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

weaker  ones;  but  a  nation  which  recognizes  the  people  as  the  only 
sovereigns,  and  regards  those  temporarily  in  authority  merely  as 
public  servants,  is  not  at  liberty  to  apply  the  principle  to  one 
section  of  the  country  and  refuse  it  to  another. 

But,  so  far  from  supporting  the  contention  of  the  imperialists, 
British  rule  in  India  really  enforces  every  argument  that  can, 
be  made  against  a  colonial  system  of  government.  In  the  first 
place,  to  authorize  a  commercial  company  "to  make  peace  or  war 
with  any  prince  or  people  (not  Christian),"  according  to  its  pleas- 
ure, was  to  place  the  pecuniary  interests  of  a  few  stockholders 
above  the  rights  of  those  with  whom  they  had  dealings.  Clive  and 
Hastings  seem  to  have  acted  upon  this  authority.  When  the 
former  was  called  to  account  he  confessed  that  he  had  forged  a 
treaty  and  his  conduct  was  such  that  parliament  was  compelled 
to  vote  that  he  "had  abused  his  powers  and  set  an  evil  example 
to  the  servants  of  the  public,"  but,  as  he  had  increased  the  power 
of  England  in  India,  his  condemnation  was  accompanied  by  the 
declaration  that  he  had,  "at  the  same  time,  rendered  great  and 
meritorious  services  to  his  country." 

The  prosecution  of  Hastings  for  wrongs  inflicted  upon  the 
people  of  India  occupies  a  conspicuous  place  among  the  political 
trials  of  history.  The  speeches  made  against  him  recall  the  ora- 
tions of  Cicero  against  Verres,  who,  by  the  way,  was  also  charged 
with  plundering  a  colony. 

Cicero  said  that  Verres  relied  for  his  hope  of  escape  upon  his 
ability  to  corrupt  the  judges  of  his  day,  and  it  appears  that  the 
East  Indian  company  was  also  accused  of  polluting  the  stream  of 
justice  only  a  century  ago. 

In  his  speeches  on  the  Nabob  of  Arcot's  debts,  Burke  said :  "Let 
no  man  hereafter  talk  of  the  decaying  energies  of  nature.  All 
the  acts  and  monuments  in  the  records  of  peculation;  the  con- 
solidated corruption  of  ages;  the  pattern  of  exemplary  plunder 
in  the  heroic  times  of  Eoman  iniquity,  never  equalled  the  gigantic 
corruption  of  this  single  act.  Never  did  Nero,  in  all  the  insolent 
prodigality  of  despotism,  deal  out  to  his  praetorian  guards  a  dona- 
tion fit  to  be  named  with  the  largess  showered  down  by  the 
bounty  of  our  chancellor  of  the  exchequer  on  the  faithful  band 
of  his  Indian  sepoys." 

How  little  human  nature  changes  from  age  to  age !  How  weak 
is  the  boasted  strength  of  the  arm  of  the  law  when  the  defendant 
possesses  the  influence  purchased  by  great  wealth,  however  ob- 
tained, and  the  accusation  comes  from  a  far-off  victim  of  oppres- 


sion ! 


Those  who  expect  justice  to  be  exercised  by  officials  far  removed 
from  the  source  of  power — officials  who  do  not  receive  their  com- 
missions from,  and  cannot  be  removed  by,  the  people  whom  they 
govern — should  read  Sheridan's  great  speech  portraying  the 
effect  of  the  Hastings  policy  upon  the  people  of  India. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  449 

Below  will  be  found  an  extract: 

"If,  my  lords,  a  stranger  had  at  this  time  entered  the  province 
of  Oude,  ignorant  of  what  had  happened  since  the  death  of  Sujat 
Dowlah,  that  prince  who,  with  a  savage  heart,  had  still  great  lines 
of  character,  and  who,  with  all  his  ferocity  in  war,  had  with  a 
cultivating  hand  preserved  to  his  country  the  wealth  which  it 
derived  from  benignant  skies,  and  a  prolific  soil;  if  observing  the 
wide  and  general  devastation  of  fields  unclothed  and  brown;  of 
vegetation  burnt  up  and  extinguished ;  of  villages  depopulated  and 
in  ruin;  of  temples  unroofed  and  perishing;  of  reservoirs  broken 
down  and  dry,  this  stranger  would  ask,  What  has  thus  laid  waste 
this  beautiful  and  opulent  land ;  what  monstrous  madness  has  rav- 
aged with  widespread  war ;  what  desolating  foreign  foe ;  what  civil 
discords;  what  disputed  succession;  what  religious  zeal;  what 
fabled  monster  has  stalked  abroad  and,  with  malice  and  mortal 
enmity  to  man,  withered  by  the  grasp  of  death  every  growth  of 
nature  and  humanity,  all  means  of  delight,  and  each  original, 
simple  principle  of  bare  existence  ?  The  answer  would  have  been : 
Not  one  of  these  causes !  No  wars  have  ravaged  these  lands  and 
depopulated  these  villages !  No  desolating  foreign  foe !  no  domes- 
tic broils !  no  disputed  succession !  no  religious  superserviceable 
zeal !  no  poisonous  monster !  no  affliction  of  Providence,  which, 
while  it  scourges  us,  cut  off  the  sources  of  resuscitation! 

"No.  This  damp  of  death  is  the  mere  effusion  of  British 
amity !  We  sink  under  the  pressure  of  their  support !  We  writhe 
under  their  perfidious  grip !  They  have  embraced  us  with  their 
protecting  arms,  and  lo !  these  are  the  fruits  of  their  alliance !" 

No  clearer  case  was  ever  made  against  a  prisoner  at  the  bar, 
and  yet  after  seven  years'  trial  before  the  house  of  lords, 
Hastings  was  acquitted,  not  because  he  was  guiltless,  but  because 
England  had  acquired  territory  by  his  policy. 

Lord  Macaulay,  in  describing  the  crimes  perpetrated  at  that 
time  against  a  helpless  people,  gives  expression  to  a  truth  which 
has  lost  none  of  its  force  with  the  lapse  of  years.  He  says :  "And 
then  was  seen  what  we  believe  to  be  the  most  frightful  of  all 
spectacles,  the  strength  of  civilization  without  its  mercy.  To  all 
other  despotism  there  is  a  check,  imperfect  indeed,  and  liable  to 
gross  abuse,  but  still  sufficient  to  preserve  society  from  the  last 
extreme  of  misery.  A  time  comes  when  the  evils  of  submission  are 
obviously  greater  than  those  of  resistance,  when  fear  itself  begets 
a  sort  of  courage,  when  a  convulsive  burst  of  popular  rage  and 
despair  warns  tyrants  not  to  presume  too  far  on  the  patience  of 
mankind.  But  against  misgovernment  such  as  then  afflicted  Ben- 
gal, it  is  impossible  to  struggle.  The  superior  intelligence  and 
energy  of  the  dominant  class  made  their  power  irresistible.  A  war 


450  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

of  Bengalese  against  Englishmen  was  like  a  war  of  sheep  against 
wolves,  of  men  against  demons." 

"The  strength  of  civilization  without  its  mercy!" 

The  American  people  are  capable  of  governing  themselves,  but 
what  reason  have  we  to  believe  that  they  can  wisely  administer 
the  affairs  of  distant  races?  It  is  difficult  enough  to  curb  corpo- 
rate power  in  this  country,  where  the  people  who  suffer  have  in 
their  own  hands  the  means  of  redress;  how  much  more  difficult 
it  would  be  to  protect  the  interests  of  the  people  where  the  people 
who  do  the  governing  do  not  feel  the  suffering  and  where  the 
people  who  do  the  suffering  must  rely  upon  the  mercy  of  alien 
rulers ! 

True,  Macaulay  argues  that  English  morality,  tardily  but 
finally,  followed  English  authority  into  the  Orient,  but,  as  a  mat- 
ter of  fact,  the  bleeding  of  India  has  continued  systematically 
during  the  present  century.  Polite  and  refined  methods  have 
been  substituted  for  the  rude  and  harsh  ones  formerly  employed, 
and  the  money  received  is  distributed  among  a  larger  number,  but 
the  total  sum  annually  drawn  from  India  is  greater  now  than  it 
was  when  England's  foremost  orators  and  statemen  were  demand- 
ing the  impeachment  of  notorious  malefactors. 

Sir  J.  Strachey,  an  Englishman,  in  a  history  recently  published, 
is  quoted  as  saying  that  "the  confiscation  of  the  rights  of  the  ryots 
(in  Bengal)  has  reached  vast  proportions."  He  then  shows  that 
through  the  action  of  the  English  government  the  Zemindars,  or 
middle  men,  have  been  able  to  enormously  increase  their  income 
at  the  expense  of  the  tillers  of  the  soil,  the  increase  being  from 
four  hundred  thousand  pounds  in  the  last  century  to  thirteen 
million  pounds  at  the  present  time. 

On  the  28th  of  December,  1897 — only  a  year  ago — a  meeting 
of  the  London  Indian  society  was  held  at  Montague  Mansions  and 
strong  resolutions  adopted.  Below  will  be  found  an  extract  from 
the  resolutions: 

"That  this  conference  of  Indians,  resident  in  the  United  King- 
dom, is  of  opinion — 

"That  of  all  the  evils  and  'terrible  misery'  that  India  has  been 
suffering  for  a  century  and  a  half,  and  of  which  the  latest  de- 
velopments are  the  most  deplorable,  famine  and  plague,  arising 
from  ever-increasing  poverty,  the  stupid  and  suicidal  frontier  war 
and  its  savagery,  of  the  wholesale  destruction  of  villages,  unworthy 
of  any  people,  but  far  more  so  of  English  civilization ;  the  unwise 
and  suicidal  prosecutions  for  sedition ;  the  absurd  and  ignorant 
cry  of  the  disloyalty  of  the  educated  Indians,  and  for  the  curtail- 
ment of  the  liberty  of  the  Indian  press :  the  despotism — like  that 
of  the  imprisonment  of  the  Natus,  and  the  general  insufficiency 
and  inefficiency  of  the  administration — of  all  these  and  many 
other  minor  evils  the  main  cause  is  the  unrighteous  and  un-British 


The  Commoner  Condensed/  451 

system  of  government  which  produces  an  unceasino-  and  ever- 
increasing  bleeding  of  the  country,  and  which  is  maintained  by  a 
political  hypocrisy  and  continuous  subterfuges  unworthy  of  the 
British  honor  and  name,  and  entirely  in  opposition  to  the  wishes 
of  the  British  people,  and  utterly  in  violation  of  acts  and  resolu- 
tions of  parliament,  and  of  the  most  solemn  and  repeated  pledges 
of  the  British  nation  and  sovereign. 

"That  unless  the  present  unrighteous  and  un-British  system  of 
government  is  thoroughly  reformed  into  a  righteous  and  truly 
British  system  destruction  to  India  and  disaster  to  the  British 
empire  must  be  the  inevitable  result." 

Mr.  Naoroji,  an  Indian  residing  in  England,  in  supporting  the 
resolution,  pointed  out  the  continuous  drain  of  money  from  India 
and  argued  that  the  people  were  compelled  "to  make  brick,  not 
only  without  straw,  but  even  without  clay/'  He  insisted  that 
England's  trade  with  India  would  be  greater  if  she  would  allow 
the  people  of  India  a  larger  participation  in  the  affairs  of  their 
own  government  and  protested  against  the  policy  of  sending 
Englishmen  to  India  to  hold  the  offices  and  draw  their  support  from 
taxes  levied  upon  the  inhabitants.  He  complained  that  British  jus- 
tice is  one  thing  in  England  and  quite  another  thing  in  India,  and 
said :  "There  (in  India)  it  is  only  the  business  of  the  people  to 
pay  taxes  and  to  slave;  and  the  business  of  the  government  to 
spend  those  taxes  to  their  own  benefit.  Whenever  any  question 
arises  between  Great  Britain  and  India  there  is  a  demoralized  mind. 
The  principles  of  politics,  of  commerce,  of  equality  which  are 
applied  to  Great  Britain  are  not  applied  to  India.  As  if  it  were 
not  inhabited  by  human  beings  I" 

Does  any  one  doubt  that,  if  we  annex  the  Philippines  and 
govern  them  by  agents  sent  from  here,  questions  between  them 
and  the  people  of  the  United  States  will  be  settled  by  the  people 
of  the  United  States  and  for  the  benefit  of  the  people  of  the  United 
States?  If  we  make  subjects  of  them  against  their  will  and  for 
our  own  benefit  are  we  likely  to  govern  them  with  any  more 
benevolence  ? 

The  resolutions  quoted  mention  efforts  for  the  curtailment  of 
the  liberty  of  the  press.  Is  that  not  a  necessary  result  of  govern- 
mental injustice?  Are  we  likely  to  allow  the  Filipinos  freedom 
of  the  press,  if  we  enter  upon  a  system  that  is  indefensible  accord- 
ing to  our  theory  of  government? 

Mr.  Hyndman,  an  English  writer,  in  a  pamphlet  issued  in  1897, 
calls  attention  to  English  indifference  to  India's  wrongs,  and, 
as  an  illustration  of  this  indifference,  cites  the  fact  that  during  the 
preceding  year  the  India  budget  affecting  the  welfare  of  nearly 
three  hundred  millions  of  people  was  brought  before  parliament 
on  the  last  day  of  the  session  when  only  a  few  members  were 


452  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

present.  He  asserts  that  "matters  are  far  worse  than  they  were 
in  the  days  of  the  old  East  India  company/'  and  that  "nothing 
short  of  a  great  famine,  a  terrible  pestilence,  or  a  revolt  on  a  large 
scale,  will  induce  the  mass  of  Englishmen  to  devote  any  attention 
whatever  to  the  affairs  of  India." 

To  show  how,  in  the  government  of  India,  the  interests  of  English 
office-holders  outweigh  the  interests  of  the  natives,  I  give  an  extract 
from  the  pamphlet  already  referred  to : 

"First,  under  the  East  India  company,  and  then,  and  far  more 
completely,  under  the  direct  rule  of  the  crown  of  the  English  • 
people,  the  natives  have  been  shut  out  from  all  the  principal 
positions  of  trust  over  five-sixths  of  Hindostan,  and  have  been 
prevented  from  gaining  any  experience  in  the  higher  adminis- 
tration, or  in  military  affairs. 

"Whenever  it  was  possible  to  .put  in  an  Englishman  to  oust  a 
native  an  Englishman  has  been  put  in,  and  has  been  paid  from 
four  times  to  twenty  times  as  much  for  his  services  as  would  have 
sufficed  for  the  salary  of  an  equally  capable  Hindoo  or  Moham- 
medan official.  *  *  *  At  the  present  time,  out  of  39,000 
officials  who  draw  a  salary  of  more  than  1,000  rupees  a  year, 
28,000  are  Englishmen  and  only  11,000  natives.  Moreover,  the 
11,000  natives  receive  as  salaries  only  three  million  pounds  a  year ; 
the  28,000  Englishmen  receive  fifteen  million  pounds  a  year.  Out 
of  the  960  important  civil  offices  which  really  control  the  civil 
administration  of  India  900  are  filled  with  Englishmen  and  only 
sixty  with  natives.  Still  worse  if  possible,  the  natives  of  India  have 
no  control  whatsoever  in  any  shape  or  way  over  their  own  taxa- 
tion, or  any  voice  at  all  in  the  expenditure  of  their  own  revenues. 
Their  entire  government — I  speak,  of  course,  of  the  250,000,000 
under  our  direct  control — is  carried  on  and  administered  by 
foreigners,  who  not  only  do  not  settle  in  the  country,  but  who 
live  lives  quite  remote  from  those  of  the  people,  and  return  home 
at  about  forty-five  or  fifty  years  of  age  with  large  pensions. 

"As  I  have  often  said  in  public,  India  is,  in  fact,  now  governed 
by  successive  relays  of  English  carpet-baggers,  who  have  as  little 
sympathy  with  the  natives  as  they  have  any  real  knowledge  of 
their  habits  and  customs." 

The  Statesman's  Year  Book  of  1897,  published  by  Macmillan 
&  Co.,  London,  contains  some  interesting  statistics  in  regard  to 
India. 

It  seems  that  there  are  but  two  and  a  quarter  millions  of  Chris- 
tians in  India — less  than  one  per  cent. — after  so  many  years  of 
English  control. 

It  appears,  also,  that  in  1891  only  a  little  more  than  three 
millions  out  of  three  hundred  millions  were  under  instruction; 


The  Commoner  Condensed  453 

a  little  more  than  twelve  millions  were  not  under  instruction,  but 
able  to  read  and  write,  while  two  hundred  and  forty-six  millions 
were  neither  under  instruction  nor  able  to  read  or  write  Twenty- 
five  millions  appear  under  the  head  "not  returned." 

The  European  army  in  India  amounts  to  seventy-four  thou- 
sand and  the  native  army  to  one  hundred  and  forty-five  thousand 
In  the  army  the  European  officers  number  five  thousand  and  the 
native  officers  twenty-seven  hundred.  One-fourth  of  the  national 
expenditure  in  India  goes  to  the  support  of  the  army.  Nearly 
one-third  of  India's  annual  revenue  is  expended  in  Great  Britain. 
The  salary  of  the  governor-general  is  250,000  rupees  per  annum.' 

The  Year  Book  above  mentioned  is  also  responsible  for  the 
statement  that  the  act  of  1893,  closing  the  Indian  mints  to  the 
free  coinage  of  silver,  was  enacted  by  the  governor-general  and 
council  upon  the  same  day  that  it  was  introduced.  Mr.  Leech, 
former  director  of  the  United  States  mint,  in  an  article  in  the 
Forum,  declared  that  the  closing  of  the  mints  of  India  on  that 
occasion  was  the  most  momentous  event  in  the  monetary  history 
of  the  present  century.  It  will  be  remembered  that  this  act  was 
made  the  excuse  for  an  extra  session  of  our  congress  and  for  the 
unconditional  repeal  of  the  Sherman  law. 

One  can  obtain  some  idea  of  the  evils  of  irresponsible  alien 
government  when  he  reflects  that  an  English  governor-general 
and  an  English  council  changed  the  financial  system  of  nearly 
three  hundred  millions  of  people  by  an  act  introduced  and  passed 
in  the  course  of  a  single  day. 

No  matter  what  views  one  may  hold  upon  the  money  question, 
he  cannot  defend  such  a  system  of  government  without  abandon- 
ing every  principle  revered  by  the  founders  of  the  republic.  Sena- 
tor Wolcott,  of  Colorado,  one  of  the  president's  commissioners, 
upon  his  return  from  Europe,  made  a  speech  in  the  senate  in  which 
he  declared  that  the  last  Indian  famine  was  a  money  famine  rather 
than  a  food  famine.  In  that  speech  Mr.  Wolcott  also  asserted  that 
the  closing  of  the  India  mints  reduced,  by  five  hundred  millions 
of  dollars,  the  value  of  the  silver  accumulated  in  the  hands  of  the 
people.  If  Mr.  Wolcott's  statement  contains  the  smallest  fraction 
of  truth  the  injury  done  by  the  East  India  company  during  its 
entire  existence  was  less  than  the  injury  done  by  that  one  act  of 
the  governor  and  his  council.  If  the  famine  was,  in  fact,  a 
money  famine,  created  by  an  act  of  the  governor  and  his  council, 
then  indeed  is  English  rule  as  cruel  and  merciless  in  India  to-day 
as  was  the  rule  of  the  East  India  company's  agents  a  century  ago 

English  rule  in  India  is  not  bad  because  it  is  English,  but  be- 
cause no  race  has  yet  appeared  sufficiently  strong  in  character  to 
resist  the  temptations  which  come  with  irresponsible  power. 

We  may  well  turn  from  the  contemplation  of  an  imperial  policy 
and  its  necessary  vices  to  the  words  of  Jefferson  in  his  first  in- 
augural message:  "Sometimes  it  is  said  that  man  cannot  be 


454  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

trusted  with  the  government  of  himself.  Can  he,  then,  be  trusted 
with  the  government  of  others?  Or  have  we  found  angels  in  the 
form  of  kings  to  govern  them  ?  Let  history  answer  this  question." 

WILLIAM  J.  BRYAN. 


ADDEESS  AT  MoKINLEY  MEMORIAL. 

Memorial  services  were  held  throughout  the  country.  At  Lin- 
coln, Neb.,  the  largest  Auditorium  in  the  city  and  two  neighboring 
churches  were  filled  to  overflowing.  Below  will  be  found  the  ad- 
dress delivered  by  Mr.  Bryan  at  the  principal  meeting: 

As  monuments  reared  by  grateful  hands  to  the  memory  of  heroes 
testify  to  the  virtues  of  the  living  as  well  as  to  the  services  of  the 
dead,  so  the  sorrow  that  has  overwhelmed  our  nation,  obliterating 
the  distinctions  of  party,  race  and  religion,  is  as  complimentary  to 
the  patriotism  of  our  people  as  to  our  departed  chief  magistrate. 
But  it  is  not  strange  that  the  people  bow  as  one  man  over  the 
bier  of  their  illustrious  fellow-citizen — not  strange  that  the  solemn 
stillness  is  broken  only  by  the  chanting  of  the  sacred  hymns  which 
he  was  wont  to  sing — not  strange  that  all  hearts  turn  in  sympathy 
to  the  husbandless  home  at  Canton. 

Neither  is  it  strange  that  all  view  with  equal  abhorrence  the 
foul  and  bloody  deed  that  robbed  the  nation  of  its  executive,  nor 
that  all  demanded  with  equal  earnestness  the  speedy  punishment 
of  the  offender  and  of  any  others  who  may  have  aided  or  coun- 
selled the  commission  of  the  crime.  It  would  be  more  than  strange 
— it  would  be  a  reproach  to  our  people — if  there  were  differences 
among  us  so  radical  that  they  could  not  be  softened  by  the  tragedy 
of  death.  It  would,  indeed,  be  a  disgrace  to  our  nation  if  the 
murder  of  a  president  concerned  only  the  members  of  the  dominant 
party.  While  no  recent  campaigns  have  aroused  deeper  feeling 
than  those  through  which  Mr.  McKinley  passed,  yet  in  no  contests 
did  the  minority  more  cheerfully  acquiesce  in  the  will  of  the 
majority  as  expressed  at  the  polls.  He  was  the  president  of  all 
the  people  and  their  dignity  and  sovereignty  were  attacked  when 
he  was  assaulted. 

We  are  all  so  linked  together  in  this  world  and  our  joys  and 
sorrows  are  so  interwoven  with  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  others  that 
no  one  liveth  unto  himself  or  dieth  unto  himself.  Even  the 
humblest  citizen  cannot  withdraw  from  earth  without  bringing 
grief  to  some  heart  and  the  number  of  those  who  mourn  is  in- 
creased as  the  circle  of  acquaintance  and  influence  is  enlarged. 

The  president's  position  made  him  a  part  of  the  life  of  all  his 
countrvmen  and  the  circumstances  which  attended  his  taking  off 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  455 

added  indignation  to  grief— indignation  that  even  one  murderous 
heart  could  be  found  in  all  the  land  and  grief  that  the  wicked 
purpose  of  that  heart  should  have  been  consummated  against  one 
so  gentle  in  spirit  and  so  kind  in  word  and  deed. 

This  is  neither  the  time  nor  the  place  for  a  discussion  of  rem- 
edies for  anarchy.  It  can  have  no  defenders  in  the  United  States. 
Government  is  a  necessity  and  the  delusion  that  society  can  exist 
without  it  is  harmful  even  when  no  violence  is  advocated,  for  it 
is  the  duty  of  every  citizen  of  a  republic  to  strive  to  make  his 
government  perfect  in  every  detail  and  this  purpose  is  not  only 
weakened,,  but  entirely  destroyed  by  the  doctrine  that  all  govern- 
ments are  bad  and  should  be  overthrown.  He  is  a  friend  of  the 
government  who  seeks  to  reform  every  abuse  and  make  the  govern- 
ment an  unalloyed  blessing,  but  he  is  a  public  enemy,  and  should 
be  treated  as  such,  who  weakens  the  authority  of  the  law  by  deny- 
ing that  government  is  desirable  or  necessary. 

If  to  theoretical  opposition  to  all  forms  of  government  is  added 
the  counselling  of  murder,  as  a  means  of  removing  officials,  then 
the  adviser  becomes  equally  guilty  with  the  assassin. 

I  yield  to  none  in  my  appreciation  of  the  private  character 
and  public  virtues  of  William  McKinley ;  I  rejoice  that  his  career 
so  fully  demonstrates  the  possibilities  of  American  citizenship. 
The  young  men  of  the  country  can  find  inspiration  and  encourage- 
ment in  the  fact  that  he  made  his  own  way  from  obscurity  to  fame. 
Those  who  are  nearing  the  boundary  of  life  can  find  consolation 
and  example  in  the  superb  manner  in  which  he  fought  his  final 
battle — his  courage  and  fortitude  in  the  closing  hours  recalling 
the  bravery  which  he  displayed  as  a  soldier.  Domestic  happiness 
has  never  been  better  illustrated  than  in  his  home  life  and  Chris- 
tian faith  and  trust  never  better  exemplified  than  in  the  way  he 
met  death. 

Few,  if  any,  of  our  public  men  have  been  more  approachable 
and  his  generous  conduct  and  genial  ways  held  to  the  last  the 
friends  whom  his  genius  attracted.  His  associates  early  recognized 
his  qualities  of  leadership  and  no  statesman  has  exerted  greater 
influence  upon  his  party  or  upon  the  politics  of  his  generation. 
He  possessed  rare  ability  in  presenting  and  defending  his  views 
and  has  made  a  profound  impression  upon  the  history  of  his  time. 

The  universality  of  the  respect  shown  for  the  deceased  and  the 
genuineness  of  the  good  will  manifested  toward  him  teach  a  lesson 
that  should  not  be  forgotten,  namely,  that  the  best  things  m  life 
are  above  and  beyond  the  domain  of  politics.     In  campaigns  the 
points  of  difference  between  citizens  are  emphasized  and  ofttimes 
exaggerated,  but  the  points  of  similarity  are  really  more  numer- 
ous, more  important  and  more  permanent.     In  stature  and  i: 
strength,  in  plans  and  in  purpose,  in  love,  in  hope,  in  fear  and  i 
all  human  needs  we  are  much  the  same.    A  man's  party  aft 
may  depend  upon  environment  or  even  upon  inheritance,  b 


456  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

character  depends  upon  his  own  conduct  and  his  morals  are  within 
his  own  keeping.  It  is  not  possible  that  all  good  should  be  con- 
fined to  one  party  and  all  evil  to  another.  It  would  be  a  sad  day 
for  the  country  if  all  the  virtue,  all  the  intelligence  and  all  the 
patriotism  were  to  be  found  in  one  political  organization;  if  there 
were  another  organization  of  any  considerable  size  having  the 
allegiance  of  all  the  vicious,  ignorant  and  unpatriotic.  It  is  un- 
fortunate that  in  the  heat  of  political  controversy  partisanship 
sometimes  becomes  so  strong  as  to  cause  injustice  to  be  done  to 
the  motives  of  political  opponents,  and  it  should  be  our  constant 
aim  to  place  our  campaigns  upon  so  high  a  plane  that  personalities 
will  be  eliminated  and  the  issues  made  to  turn  upon  the  principles 
involved. 

Let  us  hope  that  this  national  affliction  which  unites  all  factions 
in  a  common  sorrow  will  result  in  a  broader  charity  and  a  more 
liberal  spirit  among  those  who  by  different  policies  and  through 
different  parties  seek  to  promote  the  welfare  and  increase  the 
glory  of  our  common  country. 


MORAL  COURAGE. 

Speech  delivered  by  Mr.  Bryan  at  banquet  tendered  ex-Senator 
Charles  A.  Towne  on  the  eve  of  his  removal  from  Duluth  to  New 
York : 

Buckley  says  that  civilization  is  measured  by  the  mastery  of 
the  human  mind  over  the  forces  of  nature.  In  elaborating  this 
proposition  he  declares  that  the  moral  element  in  civilization  is 
insignificant  as  compared  with  the  intellectual  element.  The 
reason  which  he  gives  is  that  the  same  moral  principles  have  been 
generally  accepted  throughout  the  ages,  and  he  argues  from  this 
that  the  difference  between  races,  nations,  and  civilization  must  be 
accounted  for  by  differences  in  mental  development.  His  error, 
for  I  believe  that  he  errs,  is  due  to  the  fact  that  he  confuses  the  ac- 
ceptance of  a  moral  principle  with  living  up  to  a  moral  principle, 
whereas  nations  are  to  be  measured,  not  according  to  the  moral 
principles  admitted  to  be  true,  but  according  to  the  moral  prin- 
ciples which  govern  the  lives  of  the  people.  If  you  will  take  the 
worst  thief  that  can  be  found  in  the  penitentiary  and  place  him 
beside  the  best  man  you  know,  and  then  question  the  two,  you 
will  find  that  both  admit  the  binding  force  of  the  Ten  Command- 
ments. What  is  the  difference,  then,  between  them?  It  is  this, 
that  one  puts  his  moral  principles  into  every-day  practice  and  is 
known  as  an  honest  and  upright  man,  while  the  other  suspends  his 
moral  principles  in  moments  of  temptation  and  becomes  a  criminal. 

A  careful  study  of  the  causes  that  have  led  to  the  decline  of  na- 
tions and  to  the  decay  of  races  will,  I  think,  convince  an  impartial 
student  that  the  moral  element  is  not  only  important,  but  para- 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  457 

mount  in  a  nation's  life.  Take,  for  instance,  the  fall  of  the  Roman 
empire — it  was  not  due  to  lack  of  intellect  or  to  lack  of  the  physical 
qualities.  It  was  the  Roman  heart,  not  the  Roman  head,  that 
went  astray;  and  it  is  as  true  to-day  as  it  ever  has  been  in  the 
past  that  there  can  be  no  real  or  permanent  national  growth 
unless  that  national  growth  is  accompanied  by  the  development 
of  national  conscience  and  national  character. 

The  nation  is  but  a  collection  of  individuals  and  reflects  the 
character  of  the  people.  As  the  moral  element  is  essential  to  a 
nation  so  it  is  to  an  individual.  There  is  no  danger  of  our  becom- 
ing indifferent  to  physical  excellence,  nor  is  it  likely  that  we  shall 
place  a  low  estimate  upon  the  development  of  the  mind,  but  in 
our  rush  for  wealth  and  material  advantage  there  is  danger  that 
we  shall  ignore  the  most  important  part  of  man — the  heart. 

Plutarch  said  that  men  entertained  three  sentiments  concerning 
the  gods;  that  they  feared  them  because  of  their  strength,  ad- 
mired them  for  their  wisdom,  and  loved  them  for  their  justice. 
Men  entertain  towards  their  fellows  the  same  sentiments  which, 
according  to  Plutarch,  the  ancients  entertained  towards  their 
deities.  Force  may  excite  fear  and  genius  may  arouse  admiration, 
but  we  only  love  the  heart  that  loves.  Justice — the  fruit  of  love, 
is  the  element  which  gives  strength  and  permanence  to  organized 
government.  So  important  is  the  moral  element  in  the  individual 
that  no  man  has  ever  won  a  lasting  place  in  the  affections  of  the 
people  who  has  not  in  his  life  given  evidence  of  a  broad  and  deep 
affection  for  his  fellows.  It  may  be  truthfully  written  upon  every 
monument  reared  by  grateful  hands  to  the  memory  of  a  great  man : 
"We  loved  him  because  he  first  loved  us." 

Of  the  qualities  of  the  heart,  moral  courage  is  one  of  the  most 
essential;  it  is  the  shield  that  protects  the  other  virtues;  it  is  the 
fortress  that  guards  integrity.  The  image  of  the  Creator  is  never 
seen  more  clearly  stamped  upon  the  brow  of  man  than  when  God  s 
creature  stands  erect,  proclaiming  the  conviction  of  an  honest 
heart,  and  ready  either  to  live  for  them  or  to  die  for  them, 
is  strength  and' inspiration  in  the  presence  of  such  an  one. 

It  is  sometimes  difficult  to  select  a  subject  for  an  after-dinner 
speech  but  when  I  received  an  invitation  to  participate  m  the  fare- 
well banquet  tendered  by  the  people  of  Duluth  to  their  distin- 
guished townsman  and  my  friend,  the  sentiment,  "Moral  Courage 
ft  once  occurred  to  me,  for  he  has  given  signal  evidence  of  th< 
possession  of  that  manly  quality  which  makes  him  welcome  defeat 
rather  than  surrender  that  which  to  him  seems  right     We  adm 
the  physical  vigor  and  the  attractive  graces  of  our  guest ;  we  admire 
the  clearness  of  his  intellect,  the  force  of  his  logic,  and  that  fund 
of  information  which  enables  him  to  fortify  his  arguments  by  illus- 
trations drawn  from  history  and  from  nature's  book;  we ihjtea 
with  lingering  delight  to  the  magic  of  his  voice  and  are  led  capti 
by  his  persuasive  oratory;  but  far  above  our  admiration  t 


458  The  Commoner  Condensed. 

other  qualities  we  place  our  admiration  for  the  moral  courage 
which  has  made  him  conspicuous  among  the  members  of  his 
generation. 

We  need  this  moral  courage  for  the  protection  and  preserva- 
tion of  our  government  to-day.  We  need  it  among  public  officials, 
that  they  may  prize  above  pecuniary  rewards  and  above  the  flatter- 
ing whisperings  of  ambition,  the  honor  that  comes  from  faithful 
service  and  a  clean  record.  Whether  a  man  is  serving  his  fellows 
as  an  official  in  the  city,  in  the  country,  in  the  state,  or  in  the 
nation,  he  needs  moral  courage  to  enable  him  to  withstand  the 
pressure  that  is  brought  upon  him  by  the  great  corporations  that 
are  clamoring  for  favors  and  are  able  to  richly  compensate  those 
who  will  consent  to  turn  public  office  to  private  advantage. 

Moral  courage  is  needed  among  our  private  citizens,  that  they 
may  be  as  bold  to  punish  unfaithful  officials  as  they  are  ready  to 
commend  the  faithful.  In  times  of  war  the  individual  is  ready  to 
give  his  life,  if  need  be,  in  the  service  of  his  country;  the  de- 
mands of  peace  are  equally  imperative.  The  nation  is'  entitled 
to  the  brain  and  heart  as  well  as  to  the  body;  it  claims  the  best 
thought  and  the  best  conscience  of  its  citizens. 

Great  issues  are  at  stake;  great  interests  are  involved — aye — 
even  our  civilization  itself,  and  through  us  the  civilization  of  the 
world.  This  nation  is  a  world  power;  it  has  not  acquired  its  in- 
fluence by  recent  wars,  but  for  a  century  its  ideas  have  been  per- 
meating the  world.  Every  citizen  is  a  factor  in  our  civilization, 
and  by  his  conduct  raises  or  lowers  the  level  of  that  civilization. 
He  cannot  expect  his  neighbor  to  be  more  conscientious  than  him- 
self; he  cannot  rely  upon  some  one  performing  the  duty  that  he 
ought  himself  to  discharge.  He  owes  it  to  his  country,  as  well  as 
to  his  generation  and  to  posterity,  to  throw  the  weight  of  his 
influence  upon  the  right  side  of  every  public  question.  For  the 
proper  discharge  of  his  duties  he  will  require  the  highest  form  of 
moral  courage. 

Some  may  be  disposed  to  stamp  the  word  "failure"  upon  the 
political  career  of  Charles  A.  Towne.  I  hope  that  the  future  may 
have  in  store  for  him  a  reward  that  will  be  worthy  of  his  high 
merit,  but,  even  if  he  were  to  die  to-night,  he  would  not  have 
lived  in  vain.  He  has  set  an  example  that  must  weigh  heavily 
on  the  side  of  civic  virtue.  He  has  faced  without  flinching  a  fire 
as  hot  and  hellish  as  ever  came  from  cannon's  mouth  and  he  has 
won  a  victory  greater  and  more  glorious  than  ever  crowned  the 
life  of  one  who  fawned  at  the  feet  of  power  or  bartered  away  his 
manhood  to  secure  an  office. 

Because  he  forgot  himself  in  his  devotion  to  duty  he  will  be 
remembered  by  the  people  when  time-servers  and  self-seekers  have 
disappeared. 


The  Commoner  Condensed.  459 


IMPERIALISM. 
Extract  from  an  address  made  by  Robert  G.  Ingersoll : 

A  little  while  ago  I  stood  by  the  grave  of  the  old  Napoleon — a 
magnificent  tomb  of  gilt  and  gold,  fit  almost  for  a  dead  deity — 
and  gazed  upon  the  sarcophagus  of  black  Egyptian  marble,  where 
rest  at  least  the  ashes  of  that  restless  man.  I  leaned  over  the 
balustrade  and  thought  about  the  career  of  the  greatest  soldier 
of  the  modern  world. 

I  saw  him  walking  upon  the  banks  of  the  Seine,  contemplating 
suicide.  I  saw  him  at  Toulon — I  saw  him  putting  down  the  mob 
in  the  streets  of  Paris — I  saw  him  at  the  head  of  the  army  in 
Italy — I  saw  him  crossing  the  bridge  of  Lodi  with  the  tri-color 
in  his  hand — I  saw  him  in  Egypt  in  the  shadow  of  the  Pyra- 
mids— I  saw  him  conquer  the  Alps  and  mingle  the  eagles  of  France 
with  the  eagles  of  the  crags.  I  saw  him  at  Marengo — at  Ulm  and 
Austerlitz.  I  saw  him  in  Russia,  where  the  infantry  of  the  snow 
and  the  cavalry  of  the  wild  blast  scattered  his  legions  like  winter's 
withered  leaves.  I  saw  him  at  Leipsic  in  defeat  and  disaster — 
driven  by  a  million  bayonets  back  upon  Paris — clutched  like  a  wild 
beast — banished  to  Elba.  I  saw  him  escape  and  retake  an  empire 
by  the  force  of  his  genius.  I  saw  him  upon  the  frightful  field  of 
Waterloo,  where  Chance  and  Fate  combined  to  wreck  the  fortunes 
of  their  former  king.  And  I  saw  him  at  St.  Helena,  with  his 
hands  crossed  behind  him,  gazing  out  upon  the  sad  and  solemn 
sea. 

I  thought  of  the  orphans  and  widows  he  had  made — of  the 
tears  that  had  been  shed  for  his  glory,  and  of  the  only  woman 
who  ever  loved  him,  pushed  from  his  heart  by  the  cold  hand  of 
ambition.  And  I  said  I  would  rather  have  been  a  French  peasant 
and  worn  wooden  shoes.  I  would  rather  have  lived  in  a  hut  with 
a  vine  growing  over  the  door,  and  the  grapes  growing  purple  in 
the  rays  of  the  autumn  sun.  I  would  rather  have  been  that  poor 
peasant  with  my  loving  wife  by  my  side,  knitting  as  the  day  died 
out  of  the  sky — with  my  children  upon  my  knee  and  their  arms 
about  me.  I  would  rather  have  been  that  man  and  gone  down 
to  the  tongueless  silence  of  the  dreamless  dust  than  have  been  that 
imperial  impersonation  of  force  and  murder. 


REFERENCE    INDEX. 


Adams,    President    John    Q., 


Adams,  Samuel,  Letter  to,  15. 

Aguinaldo,  91,  188,  316. 

Allen,  John,  172. 

Allies,  Our,  390. 

Allison,    Senator   William   B., 


Alman,  Harry  Horal,  387. 
American  Anti-Trust  League, 

233- 

American      Bar     Association, 

236. 

Anarchy,  257,  261. 
Anarchy,    Responsibility    for, 

371- 

Anarchy,  The  Cure  for,  251. 
Anarchy,  Unconscious,  274. 
An  Example  of  Partisanship, 

264. 

An  Inquiry  Answered,  279. 
Anti-Anarchy  Bills,  330. 
A  Partial  Remedy,  34. 
Appeal   to   Reason,   359,   360, 

362. 

Appendix,  426. 
Aristocracy,  Is  this,  53. 
Armour  &  Co.,  154. 
Army  Increase,  25. 
Ashbridge,  Mayor,  199. 
Assassination      of      President 

McKinley,  240. 


Bacon  Resolution,  144,  145. 

Baker,  Judge  Frank,  154,  156. 

Baker,  Judge  John  H.,  238. 

Banking,  Unsafe,  187. 

Banks,  Branch,  355. 

Bayard,  Senator,  427. 

Bayston,  J.  H.,  263. 

Belmont,  Perry,  377. 

Benevolent  Assimilation,  297. 

Benton,  Thomas,  366,  383. 

Biddle,  Nicholas,  366. 

Bimetallism,  344. 

Blacklisting,  154. 

Blake,  John,  Trumpeter,  387. 

Elaine,  James  G.,  271,  273. 

Boers,  318,  368. 

Boers,  God  Bless  Them,  7. 

Boers,  Our  Duty  to,  308. 

Bolters  Denounced,  302. 

Branch  Banks,  355. 

Brewer,  Justice,  74,  161,  355. 

British  Empire,  124. 

Brown,  Captain  James,  291. 

Brown,  Justice,  161,  164,  165, 
166,  167,  168,  169,  171,  174, 
175,  177,  183,  184,  185,  186, 

237,  354,  397- 
Brown,  President  Charles,  126, 

127. 

Browning,  Rev.  F.  S.,  420. 
Bryan,  Mr.,  24,  38,  no,   116, 

135.  136,  144,  ISO,  158,  188, 


462 


REFERENCE  INDEX. 


192,    196,   199,  200,  2O7,  208, 

222,  223,   225,  239,   240,  244, 

245,  246,  266,  270,   271,  274, 

275,   282,  283,   305,  312,  392, 

394,  398,  429,  439. 
Buchanan,  Charles,  387. 
Buckle,  23,  137. 
Burns,  John,  142. 

Campaign  Speeches,   No   Pay 

for,  207. 
Campbell-Bannerman,         Sir 

Henry,  142. 
Canal,  74. 

Canal,  Nicaragua,  278. 
Canby,  Cashier  E.  L.,  126,  127. 
Cannon,  Mr.,  379. 
Capital,  Topeka,  270,  272. 
Carey,  Phoebe,  421. 
Carlisle,  John  G.,  130,  224,  230, 

271,  427,  428. 

Caught  Him  Napping,  394. 
Chaffee,     General,     316,     387, 

388,  397- 

Challenge,  282,  359,  360,  362. 
Chicago  Platform,  44,  1  16,  229, 

344,  38i. 

Chicago  University,  181. 
Chief,  Pawnee  City,  Nebraska, 


Christianity  vs.  War,  6. 
Chronicle,    Chicago,    44,    229, 
230,  231,  236,  312,  313,  314, 


Children      not      Burdensome, 

227. 

Chili,  124. 

Chinese  Atrocities,  29. 
Chinese    Exclusion   Act,    321, 

322. 

Chinese  Immigration,  48. 
Choate,  Joseph,  104,  105. 
Christian  Advocate,  277. 
Christianity  Applied,  59. 


Chronicle,  La  Crosse,  157. 

Clark,  Frank  L.,  387. 

Clay,  Henry,  180. 

Cleveland,  President  Grover, 
14,  71,  72,  129,  130,  132,  141, 
193,  210,  224,  258,  259,  266, 

267,  268,  269,  382. 
Clews,  Henry,  441. 
Combinations,  Industrial,  439. 
Commoner,  The,  I,  2,  113,  116, 

126,  135,  143,  144,  161,  171, 
176,  189,  196,  208,  209,  211, 
223,  236,  239,  240,  265,  266, 

268,  272,  273,  274,  281,  286, 
298,  304,  312,  321,  323,  327, 
334,  337,  344,  347,  349,  35°, 
35i,  352,  356,  362,  364,  365, 
385,  397,  398,  400. 

Common  People,  The,  I,  2. 
Congress,  The  Fifty-sixth,  58. 
Congressional     Record,     318, 

353- 

Conquest  by  Ideas,  329. 
Conquest,  Said  the  President, 

88 

<J(J. 

Constitution,  Atlanta,  158. 
Correspondence    Club,    Letter 

to,  37- 
Courier  -  Journal,      Louisville, 

109,  135,  229,  230,  231,  312. 
Creelman,  James,  19. 
Criminal  Aggression,  297. 
Crowder,  Colonel,  108,  109. 
Crowninshield,  Admiral,  392. 
Cuba,  35,  55,  90,  144,  283,  436, 

438. 


REFERENCE  INDEX. 


463 


Cuban  Constitution,  20. 
Cummins'    Error,    Candidate, 

278. 
Curtis,  Congressman,  330,  331, 

332,  333- 
Czolgosz,  Leon,  251,  270,  297. 

Dahlsten,  Mr.,  106. 
Daniels,  Senator,  138. 
Danish  West  Indies,  260. 
Davis,  J.  McCan,  291. 
Davis,   Senator   Cushman   K., 

89. 

Davis,  Webster,  211. 
Day,  Commissioner,  88. 
Death  without  Hope,  297. 
Deaver,  D.  Clem,  217. 
Debating  Societies,  301. 
De  Lima,  Senor,  161. 
Democracy,         Emasculating, 

229. 
Democrat       and       Chronicle, 

Rochester,  274,  275,  276. 
Democratic  Duty,  317. 
Denmark's  Good  Example,  98. 
Depew,  Chauncey  M.,  39. 
Despair,  No  Time  for,  265. 
Destiny,   109. 
Dewey,  Admiral  George,  109, 

350. 

Dick,  Chairman,  253. 

Diet,  Effect  of,  148. 

Dietrich,  Senator  Charles,  217. 

Dillon,  John,  142. 

Dingley  Law,  162,  163. 

Discussion,  Republicans  Pre- 
vent, 358. 

Dollar,  A  Stable,  327. 

Dolliver,  Senator  J.  P.,  261, 
262. 


Dooley  Discusses  Candidates, 

254- 
Dougherty,     Chairman,     253, 

254. 

Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  291. 
Downes  Case,  161. 
Dred  Scott  Decision,  156. 
Dunn,  Peter  F.,  254,  395. 
Durbin,  Governor,  303,  304. 
Duty,  Executive,  124. 
Duty,  Representative's,  119. 
Duty,  Roosevelt  on,  134. 

Economist,  London,  115. 
Edgerton,  J.  A.,  418. 
Editorial  Paragraphs,  395. 
Education,  Plutocracy  in,  147. 
Elections  at  Hand,  284. 
Elections  of,  299. 
Emasculating  Democracy, 229. 
Emperor,   The    President   an, 

51- 

Emperor  William,  219. 
Endless  Chain,  Another,  n. 
English,  Thomas  Dunn,  417. 
Erasmus,  6. 
Executive  Duty,  124. 
Export  Tax  Decision,  354. 

Fairbanks  Canning  Co.,  154. 

False  Charge,  196. 

Farmer's    Advocate,    Topeka, 

359-  36o-  361- 
Field,  Eugene,  419. 
Financial  Legislation,  365. 
Finley,  Mr.,  192. 
Fletcher,  Mr.,  379. 
Flint,  Mr.,  443. 
Foraker  Law,  162. 
Foraker,   Senator  Joseph   B., 

132. 


464 


REFERENCE  INDEX. 


Forcible  Annexation,  297. 
Fountain,  A  Living,  3. 
Francis,  Mr.,  224. 
Franklin,  Benjamin,  136,  151. 
Freedom  of  Press,  390. 
Freedom  of  Speech,  257. 
Fuller,  Chief  Justice,  161,  355. 
Fusion,  Open  and  Secret,  217. 

Gaffney,  Senator,  171. 

Gage,  Secretary  Lyman  J.,  u, 

353,  355>  356,  389,  396,  399- 
Gaines,  Congressman,  86. 
Gambling,  30,   126. 
George,  Henry,  206. 
Gettysburg  Speech,  Lincoln's, 

149. 

Gifts,  342. 
Giving,    The    Best    Form    of, 

1 80. 

Globe-Democrat,  St.  Louis,295. 
Globe,  St.  Paul,  302,  303,  397. 
Goebel,  Governor  William, 

110,303,304. 
Gold,  Production  of,  62. 
Gold,     Stronghold     Captured, 

312. 

Gorman,  Mr.,  300. 
Gould,  George,  324. 
Gray's  Commissioner  Protest, 

75- 

Gray,  Justice,  161,  397. 
Greeley,  Horace,  264. 

Hadley,  President,  70. 

Hale,  Senator,  389. 

Hanna,    Senator    Mark,    132, 

195,  379.  38o,  387,  391. 
Hardware  Dealer's  Magazine, 

3- 


Harlan,  Justice,  161,  166,  167, 

183,  355- 

Harmon,  Ex-Attorney  Gen- 
eral, 34. 

Harmony,  A  Sample  of,  66, 
128. 

Harrison,  Benjamin,  69,  83, 
124,  125. 

Hawksby,  L.  G.,  263. 

Hay,  John,  89. 

Hayes,  Rutherford  B.,  14,  259. 

Hepburn,  Congressman  Peter, 
283. 

Herald,  Boston,  169. 

Herald,  New  York,  362. 

Herron,  Professor,  178,  179. 

High  Tariff  Doomed,  255. 

Hill,  David  B.,  80,  130,  132, 
211,  225,  266,  269,  382. 

Hill,  James  J.,  224,  369,  443. 

Hill's  Coinage  Bill,  426. 

Hill's  Tempting  Offer,  369. 

Hindman,  Dr.  W.  M.,  59. 

Hirshheimer,      President     A., 

157- 

Hoar,  Senator  George  F.,  296. 
Hobart,  Vice-President,  312. 
Hollenbeck,     Judge     Conrad, 

263. 

Holmes,  George  K.,  282. 
Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  383. 
Howard,  Professor,  17. 
Hudson,  Professor,  18. 
Hugo,  Victor,  252,  433. 
Hill,   Congressman,  J.  A.  T., 

60. 

Ideas  Should  Conquer,  329. 
Imperialism,    13,    14,  86,    143, 
154,  225,  227,  450. 


REFERENCE  INDEX. 


465 


Income  Tax,  225,  381,  382. 
India,  185,  186. 
Indian  Territory,  216,  383. 
Industrial  Combinations,  439. 
Ingersoll,  Robert  G.,  450. 
Interesting        Discrimination, 

389- 
International      Steam      Pump 

Co.,  442. 
Interviews,  Fake,  210. 

Jackson,  Andrew,  14,  86,  152, 


Kier-Hardie,  Mr.,  142. 
Kilbourne,    James,    209,    286, 

305- 
Knox,  Attorney-General,  233, 

234,  235. 

Koob,  Cashier  Frank,  126. 
Kreider,  Corporal  J.  Thomas, 

386,  387. 

Kruger,  Mrs.  Paul,  219. 
Kruger,  Paul,  219,  220,  395. 

Labor  Day,  242. 


158,  159,  230,  243,  366,  396,     Lafayette,  Marquis,  377. 


415,  416,  422. 
Japan,  185. 


Lafayette's  Epitaph,  376. 
Lassiter,  Mr.,  379. 


Jefferson,  Thomas,  10,  15,  16,  Laughlin,  Professor,  327. 

92,  in,  136,  137,  139,  140,  Libby,  McNeil  &  Libby,  154. 

152,  171,  176,  177,  195,  213,  Liberty,  A  Lover  of,  281. 

226,  230,  252,  275,  279,  280,  Liberty,  A  Supreme  Good,  23. 

343»  344>  368>  378,  413,  414.  Liberty,  Constitutional,  174. 

Jefferson,  Why  not  State  of,  Lincoln,  Abraham,  27,  98,  104, 


382. 

Jellineck,  Professor,  356. 
Johnson,  J.  G.,  211. 
Johnson,  Tom  L.,  26,  191,  202, 

363- 

Jones,  Senator  James  K.,  196, 
197,  198. 

Jones,  Senator  J.  P.,  of  Nev- 
ada, 324. 

Journal,  Lincoln,  107. 

Journal,  New  York,  145,  199, 

434- 

Judicial  Tyranny,  238. 
Jury  System,  74. 
Jury,  Trial  by,  Denied,  13. 

Kansas  City  Platform,  8,  44, 
116,  191,  192,  194,  206,  209, 
210,  221,  223,  231,  263,  285, 
321,  344, 


137,  144,  149,  152,  153,  156, 

J57»  J95>  213,  289,  291,  292, 

316,  340,  394. 
Little,  Professor,  18. 
Littlefield,    Charles    E.,    236, 

237,  238. 
Logan,  Mr.,  443. 
Louisiana  Purchase,  150. 
Louisville-Nashville  R.R.,  ill. 
Love  of  Money,  44. 
Lubkan,  General,  399. 
Lynch,  George,  29. 

MacArthur,    General    Arthur, 

196,  232. 

Macaulay,  Lord,  120. 
McCartney,  Mr.,  142. 
McClay,  Historian,  392. 
McCleary,  Bill,  353. 
McClure,  Phillips  &  Co.,  291. 


466 


REI-ERENCE  INDEX. 


McEnery  Resolution,  96. 

McKenna,  Justice,  161. 

McKinley  Association,  240. 

McKinley  Memorial,  Address 
at,  446. 

McKinley,  Mrs.,  250. 

McKinley,  William,  51,  75,  88, 
114,  153,  157,  161,  217,  219, 
221,  224,  249,  250,  251,  255, 
264,  271,  272,  278,  299,  304, 

312,  315,  357,  358,  387,  394, 

422,  440,  446. 
McLaurin,  Senator,   122,   171, 

172,  173. 

McLean,  John  R.,  193. 
MacXeill,  Swift,  142. 
McSweeney,  Governor,  172. 
Madison,  James,  176,  280. 
Manifest    Destiny,    383,    384, 

385. 

Marconi,  Signer,  395. 
Markham,  Edwin,  424,  429. 
Markham's  Poetry,  340. 
Marriage  System,  178. 
Marshall,    Chief   Justice,    164, 

167,  183,  237. 

Matter  for  Investigation,  390. 
Maupin,  Will  M.,  402. 
Maxwell,  Bank  Examiner,  126, 

127. 

Mexico,  185,  186. 
Mexico,  Politics  in,  79. 
Miles,  General  Nelson  A.,  162, 

170. 
Militarism  against  Pensions,  5, 

25,  38. 
Millard,    Senator    James    H., 

217. 
Miller,     Ex-Attorney-General, 

34- 


Minister's  Lament,  211. 
Misrepresentations,  222. 
Mistaken  Identity,  24. 
Money  Problem  in  the  Philip- 
pines, 232. 

Money  Question,  The,  113. 
Monopoly  Defined,  364. 
Monroe    Doctrine,    274,    320, 

387. 
Monroe's,  President,  Message, 

306,  309,  311. 
Moral  Courage,  447. 
Morgan,  Charles,  The  Gunner, 

53- 

Morgan,  J.  Pierpont,  224,  248. 
Moses,  Adolph,  236. 
Motion,  Not  Progress,  143. 
Mount,  Governor,  303. 
Munger,  Judge  William,   140, 
141. 

Napoleon,  450. 

Nation,  New  York,  282,  283. 

Nebraska     Democrats     Firm, 

263. 

Neeley,  16. 

Negro  Question,  The,  288. 
New  Year's   Day  Resolution, 

351- 

Nicaraguan  Canal,  379. 
North  American  Review,  440, 

443- 

Oaths  of  Allegiance,  Two,  96. 
Ohio  Campaign,  209. 
Ohio  Platform,  191,  202. 
Oklahoma,  383. 
One  Eye  Open,  286. 
One  Term  for  President,  258. 
Organization,  The  Party,  8. 
Outlook,  The,  378. 


REFERENCE  INDEX, 


467 


Palmer  and  Buckner,  131,  298, 

312,  313,  377,  382. 
Panama  Route,  379,  380. 
Pan  -  American       Conference, 

273- 

Parliament,  142,  174,  187,  188. 
Peace  Manual,  6. 
Peckham,  Justice,  161,  355. 
Pensions,    Militarism    against, 

5- 

Pericles,  253. 

Personal,   116. 

Phelan,  Mayor,  311. 

Philippines,  33,  55,  64,  76,  96, 
114,  137,  144,  145,  146,  150, 
223,  230,  232,  288,  294,  315, 
317,  318,  347,  385,  386,  387, 

388,  395>  436. 
Philippine  Tariff,  352 
Plagiarism,  121. 
Planetary  Disturbances,  391. 
Plutocracy  in  Education,  147. 
Political     Science     Quarterly, 

282. 

Politics  in  Business,  117. 
Pomeroy,  Eltweed,  282. 
Populists,  Justice  to,  84. 
Porto  Rico,  161,  162,  163,  170, 

171,174,  187,  288,  354,  355, 

436,  437- 

Post-Dispatch,  188. 
Post,  Louis  F.,  203,  204,  205, 

206. 
Post,    Washington,    207,    208, 

209,  283. 

Prentiss,  S.  S.,  376,  377. 
Presidential  Term,  The,  14. 
President's  Message,  334. 
Press,  Freedom  of,  390. 
Press,  Influence  of,  37. 


Prince  of  Peace,  341. 
Producer's   Share,  282. 
Prophecy  that  Failed,  315. 
Public,  Chicago,  203. 

Quay,    Senator    Matthew    S., 

199,395- 

Questions  for  Debate,  347. 
Quincey,  Mr.,  285. 

Railroad  Passes,  31,  140. 

Ram's  Horn,  418. 

Ratify  the  Treaty,  Declare  the 

Nation's  Policy,  434. 
Reciprocity,  357. 
Record-Herald,  Chicago,  389. 
Reemelin,  Dr.,  209. 
Reorganization,  44. 
Reorganizers,    101,    102,    133, 

285,  298,  381,  390. 
Republic,  St.  Louis,  102,  103. 
Republican    and    Leader,    La 

Crosse,  157. 

Republican,  Springfield,  116. 
Representative's  Duty,  119. 
Reservation  Opening  Day,2i6. 
Rice,  Editor  George  T.,   107, 

1 08,  109,  390. 
Richter,  Harry,  387. 
Rockefeller,  John  B.,  180,  181, 

182,  224. 
Roosevelt,   Theodore,  4,   134, 

135,  J95>  J98,  244,  245,  246, 

255,  258,  259,  260,  263,  288, 

292,  293,  308,  334,  357,  383, 

384,  385- 

Ross,  Professor,  17. 
Rousseau,  396. 
Ryan,  John,  387. 

Sage,  Russell,  440,  441,  443- 


468 


REFERENCE  INDEX. 


Sampson,  Admiral  W.  T.,  51, 
53,  54,  200,  201,  392. 

Schley,  Admiral  W.  S.,  51,  200, 
201,  350,  392. 

Schwab,  Charles,  100,  147,  148, 

233,  443- 

Secret  Influence,  10. 
Senatorial  Wit,  39. 
Senators,  Popular  Election  of, 

21,  32>  77- 
Sewall,  312. 

Shaffer,  President,  198. 
Sherman  Law,  295. 
Sherman,   Senator  John,    115, 

129,267,271,325,427. 
Shiras,  Justice,  161. 
Shorter  Editorials,  389. 
Sibley,  Congressman,  428. 
Silver,  392. 

Silver,  Free  Coinage  of,  224. 
Silver  Republicans,  98,  218. 
Simon,  Solomon,  134. 
Sin,  the  Wages  of,  16. 
Smith,  Fitzhugh,  387. 
Smith,     Postmaster     General, 

175- 

Socrates,  352. 
South,  Not  Excluded,  194. 
South  African  Republics,  124. 
South  Africa,  War  in,  114. 
Southard,  Hon.  J.  H.,  426. 
Spain,   144,  145,  146. 
Spanish    Treaty,     Ratification 

of,  144. 

Spencer,  Professor,  18. 
Spooner  Resolution,  33. 
Spooner,  Senator,  389. 
Stable  Dollar,  327. 
Standard  Oil  Co.,  32,  180,  181. 
Stanford,  Mrs.  Leland,  17. 


Stanford  University,  17. 

Star,    Kansas    City,   244,   245, 

246,  247. 

Star,  San  Francisco,  107. 
Steadfastness,  366. 
Steel  Strike,  198. 
Steel  Trust,  198,  199,  233. 
Storm  Brewing,  375. 
Strikers,  248. 
Strong,  Hon.  W.  J.,  155. 
Subsidized  Instruction,  17. 
Sulu  Treaty,  189. 
Sun,  New  York,  201,  372,  375. 

Tariff    Concessions    to    Cuba, 

283. 

Tariff,  How  Aids  the  Trusts,  3. 
Tariff,    The     Philippine,    352, 

359- 
Tax  Dodging,  362. 

Taxation,  Equality  in,  202. 
Taylor,  Ex-Governor  William, 

3°3>  304- 

Taylor,  Howard  S.,  413,  422. 
Taylor,    President    Zachariah, 

3IO»  311- 

The  Man  with  the  Hoe,  429. 
Thompson,    Judge    Owen    P., 

133,  134,  363- 

Thrones,  the  Doctrine  of,  180. 
Tillman,  Senator  Benjamin  F., 

122. 

Times-Herald,  Chicago,  316. 
Times,  Kansas  City,  196,  223. 
Times,  Manila,  399. 
Times,    Richmond,    138,    158, 

159- 

Times-Star,  Cincinnati,  24. 
Tolstoi,  Count,  123. 
Torture  Indefensible,  393. 


REFERENCE  INDEX. 


469 


Towne,  Charles  A.,  19,  39,  210, 

211,447. 

Trades  Unions,  7. 
Tribune,    Chicago,    305,    326, 

327,  379*  38o. 
Tribune,  New  York,  264. 
Trust,   Envelope,  443. 
Trust,  Rubber,  443. 
Trust,  Steel,  443. 
Trusts,  263. 
Trusts,  Christian  Advocate  on, 

277. 
Trusts,    Democratic    Remedy 

for,  203. 
Trusts,  How  Tariff  Aids,  3,  32, 

34,  48,  157- 
Trusts  Retard  Progress,  385. 

Union  Stock  Yards  Co.,  154. 
Unjust  Discrimination,  359. 

Van  Wyck,  Mayor,  198. 
Vest,  Senator  George  G.,  224, 

225,  226,  227. 
Vice-Presidency,  The,  4. 
Victoria,  Queen,  104. 
Vigilance,  187. 
Virginia's  Temptation,  138. 

Walsh,  John  R.,  314. 
War  vs.  Christianity,  6. 
Ward,  Thomas  F.,  126. 
Warnings  of  a  Parting  Friend, 

39- 


Washburn,  Mr.,  286,  287. 
Washington,  Booker  T.,  288, 

293- 
Washington,  George,  39,  151, 

383,  386,  387. 
Watterson,    Henry,    109,    no, 

ill,  112,  113,  135,  136,  150, 

151,  152,  397. 
Weaver,  Mr.,  222. 
Webster,  Daniel,  187. 
Wellington,  Senator,  146. 
Wells,  Rolla,  66,  101. 
Wentz,    Alderman    and    Mrs., 

227,  228. 

West  Indies,  288. 
White,  Justice,  161,  397. 
Whitewashing,  105. 
Whitmore,  Mr.,  106. 
Whitney,  William  C.,  131,  224. 
Wilkinson,         Representative, 

105,  106,  107. 
Wilson,  William  L.,  267. 
Wise,  Mr.,  of  Australia,  7. 
Wolcott,  Senator,  304. 
World,  New  York,   188,  222, 

223,  229,  230,  266,  268,  269, 

312,  357,  358. 
World  Power,  281. 
Wright,  Charles,  387. 
Wright,  Rev.  W.  B.,  46. 

Young  Man's  Chances,  100. 
Yellow  Peril,  321. 


* 


* 


TKe  Commoner, 


ISSUED   WEEKLY, 


W.  J.  BRYAN,  Editor  and  Proprietor. 

U 


||      SUBSCRIPTION    PRICE   $1.00    PER    YEAR.      || 


TKe  Commoner  is  a  weekly  journal, 
i"    which,  while  devoted  in  its  editorial  depart- 

j  t 

ment  to  the  discussion  of  political,  economic, 
and  sociological  questions,  furnishes  its  readers    \\ 
II    each  week  a  supply  of  general  literature  of 
the  highest  order.      It  is  hoped  that  the  dis- 
II    cussion  of  political  events  as  they  arise  from 
II    time  to  time  will   interest    those  who  study 

t 


j  t 


public  questions,    regardless    of    their   party 
||     affiliations.      Subscriptions  can  be  sent  direct 

to   The  Commoner.      They   can  also  be 

•  .  » 

*  sent  through  newspapers  which  have  adver- 

tised  a  clubbing  rate,  or  through  local  agents. 


|| 

Advertising   rates   furnished   upon  appli-    || 
cation. 


Send  for  free  sample  copy  and  clubbing 
offer.     Address  all  communications  to 


The  Commonert 


The  Commonert 

II  Lincoln,  Nebraska.    * 


